Low-dose methotrexate and the risk of pneumonia in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Abstract

OBJECTIVE

To identify the risk of pneumonia in patients with rheumatoid arthritis from using low-dose methotrexate.

METHODS

We conducted a case-control study of 42 cases of patients with rheumatoid arthritis with pneumonia and 191 matched controls, those with rheumatoid arthritis without pneumonia to evaluation associations between low- dose methotrexate and pneumonia in the patient with rheumatoid arthritis. Individual patient information was obtained from the medical record in Khon Kaen Hospital between August 2010 and June 2014.

RESULTS

There was no significant association between low-dose methotrexate and incidence of pneumonia (adjusted odds ratio, 0.83; 95% confidence interval, 0.17 to 3.92). Moreover, factors including age, gender, serum erythrocyte sedimentation rate, functional class, the use of chloroquine, sulfasalazine, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, and diabetes were found not to be associated with having pneumonia in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

CONCLUSION

Low-dose methotrexate was found not to be associated with the risk of pneumonia in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.