Rheumatoid arthritis incidence rate increasing worldwide

A recent study found that the global incidence rate of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), as well as associated disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), is increasing, especially among women.

Using data from 204 territories and countries on RA between 1990 and 2019, researchers also determined that smoking continues to be a predominant risk factor for RA-associated DALYs in males.

“Further investigations into the impact of smoking, and improvements in early diagnosis and treatment strategies for RA are required to reduce the global burden of RA,” the authors wrote.

At global and regional levels, women were found to have increased ASRs and DALYs compared to men.

Reference
Yang W, Xu Y, Lin J, et al. Global, regional and national burden of rheumatoid arthritis, and attributable risk factors from 1990 to 2019: update from the Global Burden of Disease 2019 study. Clin Exp Rheumatol. 2022;doi: 10.55563/clinexprheumatol/h9lvvc. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36533984.