Rheumatoid Arthritis in Female Spouses in the Agricultural Health Study: Associations with Pesticides and Other Farm Exposures

Christine G. Parks¹, Jane Hoppin², Karen H. Costenbader³ and Dale Sandler⁴, ¹Epidemiology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Science, Research Triangle Park, NC, ²Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, ³Rheumatology, Immunology and Allergy, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, ⁴Epidemiology Branch, NIH/NIEHS, Research Triangle Park, NC

Meeting: 2015 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting

Date of first publication: September 29, 2015

Keywords: environmental factors and rheumatoid arthritis (RA)

Session Information

Date: Monday, November 9, 2015

Title: Epidemiology and Public Health Poster II: Pathogenesis and Treatment of Systemic Inflammatory Diseases

Session Type: ACR Poster Session B

Session Time: 9:00AM-11:00AM

Background/Purpose: Farming has been associated with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), but the role of pesticides is not known. We examined associations between RA, pesticides and other exposures among female spouses of licensed pesticide applicators in the Agricultural Health Study.

Methods: Women were enrolled 1993-1997 and followed through 2010. RA cases (n=275 total, 132 incident) were confirmed by a physician or self-reported use of specific disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs, and were compared with non-cases (n=24,019) who never reported RA. Pesticide use was self-reported at enrollment. We estimated odds ratios (OR) and 95% Confidence Intervals (CI) using logistic regression models adjusted for age, state (NC/IA) and smoking pack-years.

Results: A suggestive association with RA was seen for use of any pesticides (overall OR=1.2; 95%CI 0.97, 1.6; incident only OR=1.4; 95%CI 0.99, 2.1). Of 15 pesticides examined, higher RA risk was associated with the fungicide maneb/mancozeb (OR=3.3; 95%CI 1.5, 7.1) and the herbicide glyphosate (OR=1.4; 95%CI 1.0, 2.1). Elevated (OR ≥1.5) but non-significant associations were seen for RA with the insecticides permethrin and DDT and the fungicide captan. DDT was significantly associated with RA in women who grew up on a farm (65% of cases, 61% of non-cases; OR=2.0; 95%CI 1.0, 4.2). RA risk was also associated with chemical fertilizers (OR=1.7; 95%CI 1.1, 2.7) and solvents for cleaning (OR=1.6; 95%CI 1.1, 2.4), but inversely associated with livestock exposure both as a child and adult (OR=0.48; 95%CI 0.24, 0.98) compared with no animal exposure.

Conclusion: Our results suggest that specific agricultural pesticide and fertilizer exposures may increase risk of RA in women, while others related to animal handling may be protective. These findings warrant replication and future studies including information on timing of exposures.

Disclosure: C. G. Parks, None; J. Hoppin, None; K. H. Costenbader, None; D. Sandler, None.

To cite this abstract in AMA style:

Parks CG, Hoppin J, Costenbader KH, Sandler D. Rheumatoid Arthritis in Female Spouses in the Agricultural Health Study: Associations with Pesticides and Other Farm Exposures [abstract]. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2015; 67 (suppl 10). https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/rheumatoid-arthritis-in-female-spouses-in-the-agricultural-health-study-associations-with-pesticides-and-other-farm-exposures/. Accessed .

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