Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37349120›Full record

Trial reportRMD open2023

Changes in body weight and body composition in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis aged 65+ treated with 2-year low-dose add-on prednisolone in the randomised double-blind placebo-controlled GLORIA trial.

Melek Güler-Yüksel, Martijn Kuijper, Reinhard Bos, Esmeralda Molenaar, Jasper Emmering, Sylvia Eshuis, Adams Human, Floor Reimann, Maarten Boers, Marc R Kok

Abstract readRandomized Controlled TrialPragmatic Clinical Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in RMD open, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Melek Güler-YükselDepartment of Rheumatology and Immunology, Maasstad Hospital, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.ORCID 0000-0002-6071-0261
Martijn KuijperDepartment of Rheumatology and Immunology, Maasstad Hospital, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Reinhard BosDepartment of Rheumatology, Medical Centre Leeuwarden, Leeuwarden, The Netherlands.
Esmeralda MolenaarDepartment of Rheumatology, Groene Hart Hospital, Gouda, The Netherlands.
Jasper EmmeringDepartment of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Maasstad Hospital, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Sylvia EshuisDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, Medical Centre Leeuwarden, Leeuwarden, The Netherlands.
Adams HumanDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, Groene Hart Hospital, Gouda, The Netherlands.
Floor ReimannDepartment of Rheumatology, Medical Centre Leeuwarden, Leeuwarden, The Netherlands.
Maarten BoersDepartment of Epidemiology & Data Science, Amsterdam UMC Locatie VUmc, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.ORCID 0000-0002-6969-283X
Marc R KokDepartment of Rheumatology and Immunology, Maasstad Hospital, Rotterdam, The Netherlands kokmr@maasstadziekenhuis.nl.ORCID 0000-0003-2394-6926

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesTo investigate the effect of 2 years of add-on prednisolone 5 mg/day on body weight and composition in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) aged 65+ and the relation with disease activity.

methodsThe Glucocorticoid Low-dose Outcome in RheumatoId Arthritis trial, a pragmatic, placebo-controlled, double-blind, randomised controlled trial investigated the balance of benefit and harm of 2 years of prednisolone 5 mg/day added to standard care in 451 patients with active RA aged 65+. In the current study, 449 patients were included, and body weight and Disease Activity Score of 28 Joints were measured at baseline and after 3, 6, 12, 18 and 24 months. In 57 patients, body composition was assessed at baseline and after 2 years with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Data were analysed with longitudinal mixed models.

resultsThe mean (95% CI) change in body weight was 0.9 (0.3 to 1.6) kg in the prednisolone group and -0.4 (-1.1 to 0.2) kg in the placebo group (difference 1.3 (0.5-2.2), (p<0.01)). The treatment effect was independent of disease activity suppression and comprised mostly increase in (appendicular) lean mass after 2 years. There was no significant increase in total fat mass, nor redistribution of fat mass from peripheral to central tissues.

conclusionsPatients with active RA aged 65+ treated with prednisolone 5 mg/day for 2 years gained about 1 kg in weight, compared with minimal-non-significant-weight loss on placebo. Our data suggest that the small increase in weight is mostly lean mass, rather than increase or redistribution of fat mass traditionally associated with glucocorticoid treatment.

Indexed as

Arthritis, RheumatoidPrednisoloneBody CompositionBody WeightGlucocorticoidsHumansGlucocorticoidsPrednisoloneArthritis, RheumatoidGlucocorticoidsInflammation

Identifiers

PMID37349120
PMCPMC10314614

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.