Potential long-term effect of tumor necrosis factor inhibitors on dementia risk: A propensity score matched retrospective cohort study in US veterans
Chunlei Zheng, Nathanael R Fillmore, Jaime Ramos-Cejudo, Mary Brophy, Ricardo Osorio, Mark E Gurney, Wei Qiao Qiu, Rhoda Au, George Perry, Maureen Dubreuil, Shu G Chen, Xin Qi, Pamela B Davis, Nhan Do, Rong Xu, Chunlei Zheng, Nathanael R Fillmore, Jaime Ramos-Cejudo, Mary Brophy, Ricardo Osorio, Mark E Gurney, Wei Qiao Qiu, Rhoda Au, George Perry, Maureen Dubreuil, Shu G Chen, Xin Qi, Pamela B Davis, Nhan Do, Rong Xu
Abstract
Introduction: Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors are widely used to treat rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and their potential to retard Alzheimer's disease (AD) progression has been reported. However, their long-term effects on the dementia/AD risk remain unknown.
Methods: A propensity scored matched retrospective cohort study was conducted among 40,207 patients with RA within the US Veterans Affairs health-care system from 2000 to 2020.
Results: A total of 2510 patients with RA prescribed TNF inhibitors were 1:2 matched to control patients. TNF inhibitor use was associated with reduced dementia risk (hazard ratio [HR]: 0.64, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.52-0.80), which was consistent as the study period increased from 5 to 20 years after RA diagnosis. TNF inhibitor use also showed a long-term effect in reducing the risk of AD (HR: 0.57, 95% CI: 0.39-0.83) during the 20 years of follow-up.
Conclusion: TNF inhibitor use is associated with lower long-term risk of dementia/AD among US veterans with RA.
Keywords: Alzheimer's disease; US veterans; cohort study; dementia; long-term effect; rheumatoid arthritis; tumor necrosis factor inhibitor.
Conflict of interest statement
Conflict of Interest Disclosures
None of the authors have financial interests to disclose.
© 2021 the Alzheimer's Association.
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Source: PubMed