Evaluation of rheumatoid arthritis biomarkers among diabetes mellitus patients at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, Eldoret Kenya

Abstract

Background: Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic disease characterized by persistent inflammation mainly of the peripheral joints. It has an unpredictable and variable course of manifestation. In Kenya, there is little information on the profiles of RA biomarkers in type II diabetic patients.

Objective: To evaluate RA biomarkers among type-II diabetes mellitus patients. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted in the Diabetic Clinic between May and August 2018. A total of 180 adult participants were conveniently recruited into the study. demographic data was collected by use of a questionnaire and venous blood was obtained for the determination of Rheumatoid arthritis biomarkers. Data was analyzed for measures of central tendencies and associations.

Results: The mean age of the participants was 55.2± 15.4 years, with the age range between 22 and 89 years. Females were 67% of the participants. The mean duration the participants had lived with T2DM was 8.4± 6.2 years. The proportions of RF and Anti-CCP positivity among the participants were 10% & 17.8% respectively. About 3.9% of the participants were positive for both RF and Anti-CCP markers while 76.1% were negative, Anti-CCP +ve/ RF-ve 13.9% and Anti-CCP-ve/ RF +ve 6.1 %. A statistically significant difference was seen between anti-CCP and RF positivity (P=0.0184).

Conclusion: The proportion of Rheumatoid Arthritis among people living with diabetes at MTRH during the study period was 10% by RF and 17.8%. Anti-CCP biomarker indicating that Anti-CCP picked more participants. Recommendation: That T2DM patients be screened regularly for Rheumatoid Arthritis.