Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41960219›Full record

ArticleJournal of the colleges of medicine of South Africa2026

Cigarette smoking habits and attitudes among rheumatoid arthritis patients at a tertiary centre in South Africa.

Simon J le Roux, Herman Bagula, Richard van Zyl-Smit, Bridget Hodkinson

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of the colleges of medicine of South Africa, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
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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

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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

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

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

4 authors.

Simon J le RouxDepartment of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0003-0357-0930
Herman BagulaDepartment of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0745-1838
Richard van Zyl-SmitDepartment of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4115-5362
Bridget HodkinsonDepartment of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5360-9483

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: People living with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who smoke cigarettes are known to have worse outcomes with regard to disease control, extra-articular complications and comorbidities. Data regarding this from sub-Saharan Africa is lacking. This study aims to describe the prevalence of cigarette smoking and explore disease control, comorbidities and attitudes of smoking among RA patients in an outpatient clinic at a tertiary hospital. Methods: A cross-sectional study of consenting adult outpatients with RA was conducted. Demographic, clinical and patient-reported outcome measures, together with a questionnaire about smoking and Fagerström test for nicotine dependence, were collated. Results: Of 632 patients (536 female participants), the mean (standard deviation) age and disease duration were 55.4 (13.0) and 10.1 (9.3) years, and 74.1% had two or more comorbidities. Of 218 (34.5%) smokers, more men smoked ( Conclusion: One in three patients with RA actively smoked. Those who smoked had more pain, anxiety, and depression but with low nicotine dependency scores. Contribution: The approach to tobacco cessation should occur in parallel with optimal pain, behavioural support and disease control.

Indexed as

comorbiditiesnicotine dependencerheumatoid arthritissmokingSouth Africa

Identifiers

PMID41960219
PMCPMC13058492

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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.