Association of Combined Exposure to Ambient Air Pollutants, Genetic Risk, and Incident Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Prospective Cohort Study in the UK Biobank
Abstract
Background: Evidence for a potential link between air pollution and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is inconsistent, and the modified effect of genetic susceptibility on the relationship between air pollution and RA has not been well studied. Objective: Using a general population cohort from the UK Biobank, this study aimed to investigate the associations between various air pollutants and the risk of incident RA and to further estimate the impact of combined exposure to ambient air pollutants on the risk of developing RA under the modification effect of genetic predisposition. Methods: A total of 342,973 participants with completed genotyping data and who were free of RA at baseline were included in the study. An air pollution score was constructed by summing the concentrations of each pollutant weighted by the regression coefficients with RA from single-pollutant models to assess the combined effect of air pollutants, including particulate matter (PM) with diameters ≤2.5μm (PM2.5), between 2.5 and 10μm (PM2.5–10), and ≤10μm (PM10), as well as nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx). In addition, the polygenic risk score (PRS) of RA was calculated to characterize individual genetic risk. The Cox proportional hazard model was used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) of associations of single air pollutant, air pollution score, or PRS with incident RA. Results: During a median follow-up time of 8.1 y, 2,034 incident events of RA were…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a cohort study, done in people. Its evidence level is 3 of 5 (Moderate · trial / cohort / secondary analysis). Trials without a large randomized design, cohorts and secondary analyses give moderate evidence. Reported size: 342,973 participants or records.
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