Body composition parameters in systemic sclerosis-a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to summarize current evidence regarding body composition (BC) in SSc in order to gain new insights and improve clinical care in the context of the nutritional status of SSc patients. METHODS: The databases Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus and Cochrane Library were searched on 4 January 2023. Studies were included if they provided data regarding BC obtained by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) or bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) in patients with SSc and healthy controls (HC). The study design criteria for inclusion were cohort and observational studies. The risk of bias assessment was performed using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. For meta-analysis, mean difference with a 95% confidence interval was obtained and all results were depicted as forest plots. RESULTS: The number of retrieved publications was 593, of which nine were included in a random-effects meta-analysis totalling 489 SSc patients and 404 HC. Overall, significantly lower body mass index, lean mass (LM), fat mass (FM) and phase angle values were found in SSc patients when compared with HC. Furthermore, FM and LM were significantly lower in SSc patients when the DXA method was applied, whereas the same parameters were comparable between two groups of participants when BIA was applied. CONCLUSION: Altered BC is characteristic of SSc patients indicating the need for regular nutritional status assessment in order to improve the quality of life and clinical care of patients with SSc.

Vitamin D and Sjögren's Disease: Revealing the Connections-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the present review was to summarize the current evidence about the impact of vitamin D deficiency on pathology and clinical manifestations of Sjögren's disease (SD). METHODS: Databases PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Cochrane library were searched for studies assessing the levels of vitamin D in SD patients using the following keywords: (vitamin D OR calciferol OR cholecalciferol OR 25-hydroxyvitamin D OR 25-hydroxycholecalciferol OR calcidiol OR calcitriol OR 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol) AND (Sjögren's Syndrome OR Sjögren's disease) accessed on 20 September 2022. Out of 248 retrieved studies, following the systematic review methodology and defined inclusion and exclusion criteria, 9 clinical studies were eligible to be included in the present review: 4 of them case-control, 4 cross-sectional, and 1 cohort study. RESULTS: Nine studies totaling 670 SD patients and 857 healthy controls were eligible for meta-analysis with moderate to high methodological quality as determined by the Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Scale (NOS). According to the obtained results, a high prevalence of hypovitaminosis D was observed in SD patients when compared to healthy controls (95% CI -10.43, -2.39; p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Available evidence points to lower levels of vitamin D in patients with SD in comparison to healthy controls. However, further studies are necessary to understand the underlying mechanisms associated with the role of vitamin D in the development and disease severity of SD.

Assessment of Hydration, Nutritional Status and Arterial Stiffness in Hypertensive Chronic Kidney Disease Patients.

The aim of this cross-sectional study was to determine the body fluid volume in patients diagnosed with both chronic kidney disease (CKD) and arterial hypertension (AH), and to investigate the relationship between fluid overload (FO), nutritional status and arterial stiffness in this specific patient population. A total of 169 participants with CKD and AH were enrolled in the study, and data on general parameters, comorbidities, medication use, and laboratory parameters were collected. Body composition was assessed with a Tanita MC 780 device, and data on the central and peripheral systolic and diastolic blood pressure, as well as pulse wave velocity (PWV) and the augmentation index (AIx) were collected with an IEM Mobil-O-Graph 24 h ambulatory blood pressure monitor, which was based on oscillometry. The Mediterranean Diet Serving Score (MDSS) questionnaire was used to determine the adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MeDi). Our results showed that the significant positive predictors of hydration status were the use of diuretics and oral hypoglycemic agents, whereas the negative predictors were female sex, higher body mass index level and use of two or more antihypertensives in the form of a single-pill combination. We also found differences in blood pressure and arterial stiffness parameters in relation to volume status, along with differences based on the presence of diabetes mellitus (DM). In conclusion, these results call for a higher awareness of volume status in the care of CKD patients with AH, especially in those with diabetes mellitus.

Pulmonary Ultrasonography in Systemic Sclerosis-Induced Interstitial Lung Disease-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the current systematic review was to summarize and evaluate the overall advantages of lung ultrasonography (LUS) examination using high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) as a reference standard in assessing the presence of interstitial lung disease (ILD) in systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients. METHODS: Databases PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science were searched for studies evaluating LUSs in ILD assessments including SSc patients on 1 February 2023. In assessing risk of bias and applicability, the Revised Tool for the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies (QUADAS-2) was used. A meta-analysis was performed and the mean specificity, sensitivity, and diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) were obtained. In addition, in a bivariate meta-analysis, the summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) curve area was additionally calculated. RESULTS: Nine studies with a total of 888 participants entered the meta-analysis. A meta-analysis was also performed without one study that used pleural irregularity to assess the diagnostic accuracy of LUSs using B-lines (with a total of 868 participants). Overall sensitivity and specificity did not differ significantly, with only the analysis of the B-lines having a specificity of 0.61 (95% CI 0.44-0.85) and a sensitivity of 0.93 (95% CI 0.89-0.98). The diagnostic odds ratio of univariate analysis of the eight studies using the B-lines as a criterion for ILD diagnosis was 45.32 (95% CI 17.88-114.89). The AUC value of the SROC curve was 0.912 (and 0.917 in consideration of all nine studies), which indicates high sensitivity and a low false-positive rate for the majority of the included studies. CONCLUSIONS: LUS examination proved to be a valuable tool in discerning which SSc patients should receive additional HRCT scans to detect ILD and therefore reduces the doses of ionizing radiation exposure in SSc patients. However, further studies are needed to achieve consensus in scoring and the evaluation methodology of LUS examination.

Vitamin D in psoriatic arthritis - A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to summarize current evidence on vitamin D status in patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) with a particular focus on disease activity. METHODS: PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus and Cochrane Library databases were searched for studies that investigated vitamin D levels in PsA. The search was conducted on 12th October 2022. Included studies were cohorts, RCTs or observational studies, those assessing the level of 25(OH)D3 with control group consisting of healthy or psoriasis (Pso) patients. Nottingham-Ottawa Quality Scale was used to assess methodological quality. Random effects meta-analysis model was applied with inverse variance weighting and mean difference with 95% CI was calculated. RESULTS: Of 356 retrieved studies, 76 duplicates and 270 studies were excluded according to the exclusion criteria with one study unavailable. Four studies including 264 PsA patients and 287 healthy controls and five studies including 225 PsA patients and 391 Pso patients assessing vitamin D levels were eligible for meta-analysis. Vitamin D levels were lower in PsA patients compared to the healthy group (MD = -6.42; 95 % CI -8.31, -4.53; P < 0.01), while higher compared to Pso patients (MD = 2.37; 95 % CI 0.97, 3.78; P < 0.01). Included studies had moderate to low risk of bias. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, PsA patients have lower vitamin D levels than the general population. However, further studies are essential to understand the role of vitamin D in the development and treatment of PsA and the differences in vitamin D metabolism in PsA and Pso.

Prescription Trends of Biologic DMARDs in Treating Rheumatologic Diseases: Changes of Medication Availability in COVID-19.

Biologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) are very effective in treating rheumatic diseases with a good patient tolerance. However, high cost and individualistic approach requires dedication of the physician. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the prescription of biologic DMARDs in rheumatology at the University Hospital of Split. The data collection was conducted through an archive search in the Outpatient Clinic for Rheumatology in the University Hospital of Split, Split, Croatia. The search included the period before and after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in Croatia (31 March 2020). Collected data included age, sex, ICD-10 code of diagnosis, generic and brand name of the prescribed drug, date of therapy initiation, and medication administration route. In the pre-COVID-19 period, 209 patients were processed, while in the COVID-19 period, 185 patients were processed (11.5% fewer). During pre-COVID-19, 231 biologic medications were prescribed, while during COVID-19, 204. During COVID-19, IL-6 inhibitors were less prescribed (48 (21%) vs. 21 (10%) prescriptions, p = 0.003), while IL-17A inhibitors were more prescribed (39 (17%) vs. 61 (30%) prescriptions, p = 0.001). In ankylosing spondylitis (AS), adalimumab was prescribed more during pre-COVID-19 (25 vs. 15 patients, p = 0.010), while ixekizumab was prescribed less (1 vs. 10 patients, p = 0.009). In rheumatoid arthritis, tocilizumab was prescribed more in the pre-COVID-19 period (34 vs. 10 patients, p = 0.012). Overall, the prescription trends of biologic DMARDs for rheumatologic diseases did not vary significantly in the University Hospital of Split, Croatia. Tocilizumab was prescribed less during COVID-19 due to shortages, while ixekizumab was more prescribed during COVID-19 due to an increase in psoriatic arthritis patients processed and due to being approved for treating AS.