Patients with hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) have an increased risk of developing inflammatory arthritis, according to a recent study published in Dermatology.
“The purpose of this study was to systematically investigate the association between HS and inflammatory arthritis,” explained the study authors.
Researchers performed a systematic review and meta-analysis according to the PRISMA guidelines using electronic databases to select studies and extract data. Seven studies provided the data on the association between HS and the risk for inflammatory arthritis. The pooled studies included 200,361 patients with HS and 385,599 controls.
Pooled analysis showed an increased risk of inflammatory arthritis, spondyloarthritis (OR, 2.10; 95% CI, 1.40-3.15), ankylosing spondylitis (OR, 1.89; 95% CI, 1.14-3.12), and rheumatoid arthritis (OR, 1.96; 95% CI, 1.28-2.98) in patients HS compared with controls (OR, 3.44; 95% CI, 1.92-6.17).
“Our findings show that HS patients have a 3-fold increased risk of developing inflammatory arthritis,” concluded the study authors. “HS patients are specifically at a higher risk for spondyloarthritis, its subtype [ankylosing spondylitis], and [rheumatoid arthritis],” they continued. –Lisa Kuhns
Reference
Almuhanna N, Finstad A, Alhusayen R. Association between hidradenitis suppurativa and inflammatory arthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Dermatology. Published online March 26, 2021. doi:10.1159/000514582
