Increased Prevalence of Gastroesophageal Disease Among Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Patompong Ungprasert¹, Nipith Charoenngam², Ben Ponvilawan³, Pitchaporn Yingchoncharoen³ and Jerapas Thongpiya⁴, ¹Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland Heights, OH, ²Mount Auburn Hospital, Boston, MA, ³Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand, ⁴Mahdiol University, Bangkok, Thailand

Meeting: ACR Convergence 2021

Keywords: Comorbidity, Epidemiology, Inflammation, meta-analysis, rheumatoid arthritis

Session Information

Date: Tuesday, November 9, 2021

Title: RA – Diagnosis, Manifestations, & Outcomes Poster IV: Outcomes, Trajectory of Disease, & Epidemiology (1645–1673)

Session Type: Poster Session D

Session Time: 8:30AM-10:30AM

Background/Purpose: Recent experimental studies have suggested that systemic inflammatory response could lead to impairment of lower esophageal function, resulting in gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Epidemiologic studies also support this association as increased prevalence of GERD has been observed in several systemic inflammatory disorders, including rheumatoid arthritis (RA), although the evidence is still quite limited. The current systematic review and meta-analysis is conducted with the aim to summarize data from all available studies.

Methods: Potentially eligible studies were identified from Medline and EMBASE databases from inception to April 2021 using search strategy that comprised terms for “gastroesophageal reflux disease ” and ” rheumatoid arthritis “. Eligible study must be cohort study that consists of one cohort of individuals with RA and another cohort of individuals without RA. Then, the study must report prevalence of GERD in each group or report odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) comparing prevalence of GERD between the groups. OR of all included studies were combined together to calculate pooled OR using the generic inverse variance method of DerSimonian and Laird, which assigned weight of each study in reverse to its standard error. Funnel plot was used for assessment of publication bias.

Results: After two rounds of independent review by two investigators, a total of five eligible studies were identified. The meta-analysis found a significantly increased prevalence of GERD among patients with RA with the pooled OR of 1.98 (95% CI, 1.49 – 2.65; I² 83%) compared with individual without RA (Figure 1). Funnel plot of this study was symmetric and was not suggestive of publication bias.

Conclusion: A significantly increased prevalence of GERD among patients with RA was observed in this study.

Figure 1: Forest plot of this meta-analysis

Disclosures: P. Ungprasert, None; N. Charoenngam, None; B. Ponvilawan, None; P. Yingchoncharoen, None; J. Thongpiya, None.

To cite this abstract in AMA style:

Ungprasert P, Charoenngam N, Ponvilawan B, Yingchoncharoen P, Thongpiya J. Increased Prevalence of Gastroesophageal Disease Among Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis [abstract]. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2021; 73 (suppl 9). https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/increased-prevalence-of-gastroesophageal-disease-among-patients-with-rheumatoid-arthritis-a-systematic-review-and-meta-analysis/. Accessed .

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