Rheumatoid factor positivity increases all-cause and cancer mortality: a cohort study

AbstractThe aim of this study was to determine whether rheumatoid factor (RF) is associated with mortality from all-cause, cardiovascular disease (CVD), and cancer in the healthy adults. We recruited South Korean health check-up examinees without rheumatoid arthritis (RA). A cohort study was performed in 295,837 participants presumably free of osteoarthritis or RA, and who had undergone health screening between 2002 and 2012 and been followed up to determine the risk of all-cause, CVD, and cancer-specific mortality with respect to the presence or titer of RF. To determine whether the participants were deceased, we used National Death Index death certificates. The prevalence of RF positivity ( ≥20 IU/mL) was 4.4%. During 1,447,403 person-years of follow-up, 1402 participants died. Compar...

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