Performance of the RABBIT infection risk score in an Argentinian rheumatoid arthritis cohort.

Patients with rheumatic autoimmune diseases have a higher risk of infections compared with age-and sex-matched controls. In Latin America, there are no validated tools to assess the risk of serious infection. The objectives were to estimate the incidence of serious infections in a cohort of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients followed for 12 months and to validate the RABBIT risk score for serious infections. Patients with RA were included and followed for 12 months. Baseline sociodemographic data, comorbidities, RA characteristics, and vaccination status were recorded. The baseline RABBIT risk score was calculated. Serious infections were documented, describing site and time since enrollment. Six hundred five patients were included (13 centers). The incidence of serious infection was 5% (95% CI 3-7). The most frequent sites were respiratory and urinary (90%). Performance of RABBIT risk score: patients with no infection during follow-up had a median score of 1.2 (IQR 0.8-2.1) and patients with infection 5.1 (IQR 2.15-12.6) p 0.00001. ROC curve analysis: AUC 0.86 (95% CI 0.8-0.94), best cut-off 2.85 (sensibility 75%, specificity 85%). The incidence of serious infections was 5% during the follow-up. The RABBIT score performed excellently in our patients. Key Points • The RABBIT risk score for serious infections showed an excellent performance in a population different (Latin America) from the original one included in the German registry. • This may assist rheumatologists in selecting drugs for patients according to the individual risk of infection, in a fast and simple way.

[Rheumatoid arthritis and combined pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema]. / Artritis reumatoidea y síndrome combinado de fibrosis pulmonar y enfisema.

The combination of pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema is a syndrome described in the last years, which has its own characteristics and it is not only the casual association between the two entities. The idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is the most common type of pulmonary fibrosis. However other interstitial lung diseases could be part of this syndrome. Among them is the connective tissue disease-associated interstitial lung disease. We report a case of this syndrome associated with rheumatoid arthritis. It has the peculiarity that the connective disease became overt several years after the presentation of combined pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema syndrome, which is infrequently reported in the literature.

Artritis reumatoidea y síndrome combinado de fibrosis pulmonar y enfisema / Rheumatoid arthritis and combined pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema

La combinación de fibrosis pulmonar y enfisema es un síndrome descripto en los últimos años que tiene características propias y no es la casual asociación de dos entidades. El componente de fibrosis más común corresponde a la fibrosis pulmonar idiopática. Sin embargo, otras enfermedades intersticiales pueden formar parte de este síndrome, entre ellas las asociadas a enfermedades del tejido conectivo. Se presenta un caso de este síndrome asociado a artritis reumatoidea con la particularidad que la misma se hizo evidente varios años después del síndrome combinado fibrosis pulmonar y enfisema, hecho muy poco comunicado en la literatura.

The combination of pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema is a syndrome described in the last years, which has its own characteristics and it is not only the casual association between the two entities. The idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is the most common type of pulmonary fibrosis. However other interstitial lung diseases could be part of this syndrome. Among them is the connective tissue disease-associated interstitial lung disease. We report a case of this syndrome associated with rheumatoid arthritis. It has the peculiarity that the connective disease became overt several years after the presentation of combined pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema syndrome, which is infrequently reported in the literature.