Subclinical Renal Dysfunction in Rheumatoid Arthritis

September 1, 2026 updated by: Nermeen Ebrahim Barsoum, Assiut University

Assessment of Subclinical Renal Dysfunction in Rheumatoid Arthritis and Its Association With Disease Activity

This comparative cross-sectional study aims to determine the prevalence of subclinical renal dysfunction in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and to evaluate its association with disease activity and inflammatory markers compared with age- and sex-matched healthy controls at Assiut University Hospitals.

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Detailed Description

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic systemic autoimmune disease that may be associated with early renal involvement even before overt chronic kidney disease develops. Subclinical renal dysfunction refers to early impairment of renal function that is not detected by conventional serum creatinine alone.

This hospital-based comparative cross-sectional study will include two groups: patients with rheumatoid arthritis diagnosed according to the 2010 ACR/EULAR classification criteria, and age- and sex-matched apparently healthy controls. All participants will undergo clinical assessment, disease activity evaluation using DAS28, laboratory investigations including estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR), and renal ultrasonography. The study will determine the prevalence of subclinical renal dysfunction and assess its association with disease activity, inflammatory markers, serological markers, disease duration, and treatment-related factors.

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

120

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Adult patients with rheumatoid arthritis attending the Rheumatology outpatient clinic and inpatient wards at Assiut University Hospitals, and age- and sex-matched healthy controls.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age 18 years or older
  • For patient group: Diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis according to the 2010 ACR/EULAR classification criteria
  • For control group: Age- and sex-matched apparently healthy individuals with no history of autoimmune disease or chronic kidney disease
  • Willingness to provide written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Known chronic kidney disease
  • Acute kidney injury
  • Diabetes mellitus
  • Uncontrolled hypertension
  • Active urinary tract infection
  • Pregnancy
  • History of obstructive uropathy or renal stones
  • Systemic lupus erythematosus or other connective tissue diseases
  • Malignancy
  • Patients on maintenance hemodialysis

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort
Rheumatoid arthritis patients (n=80)
Adult patients diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis according to the 2010 ACR/EULAR classification criteria attending the Rheumatology outpatient clinic and inpatient wards at Assiut University Hospitals.
Healthy controls (n=40)
Age- and sex-matched apparently healthy individuals with no history of autoimmune disease or chronic kidney disease.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Prevalence of subclinical renal dysfunction
Time Frame: Baseline
Proportion of participants with subclinical renal dysfunction, defined as the presence of reduced estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR < 90 mL/min/1.73 m²) and/or elevated urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR ≥ 30 mg/g) in the absence of previously diagnosed chronic kidney disease.
Baseline

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Comparison of eGFR between groups
Time Frame: Baseline
Mean difference in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) calculated by the CKD-EPI equation between rheumatoid arthritis patients and healthy controls.
Baseline
Comparison of UACR between groups
Time Frame: Baseline
Difference in urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (mg/g) between rheumatoid arthritis patients and healthy controls.
Baseline
Association with disease activity
Time Frame: Baseline
Association between subclinical renal dysfunction and DAS28-ESR (and DAS28-CRP) scores.
Baseline
Association with inflammatory markers
Time Frame: Baseline
Association between subclinical renal dysfunction and levels of ESR and CRP.
Baseline
Independent predictors of subclinical renal dysfunction
Time Frame: Baseline
Clinical, inflammatory, serological, disease-related, and treatment-related factors independently associated with subclinical renal dysfunction using multivariable regression analysis.
Baseline

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Assiut University

Investigators

  • Study Chair: Essam m abd elaziz, prof, Internal Medicine Department, Assiut University Hospitals, Assiut, Egypt

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

September 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

September 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

June 1, 2028

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

September 1, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 1, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

September 4, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

September 4, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 1, 2026

Last Verified

September 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • RA-Renal-Assiut-2026

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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