Mortality in Antinuclear Antibody-Positive Patients with and Without Rheumatologic Immune-Related Disorders: A Large-Scale Population-Based Study

• Published in: Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) Lithuania), 2025-01, Vol.61 (1), p.60
• Main Authors: Shani, Uria, David, Paula, Balassiano Strosberg, Ilana, Regev, Ohad, Yihia, Mohamad, Ben-Shabat, Niv, McGonagle, Dennis, Weinstein, Orly, Amital, Howard, Watad, Abdulla
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; anti-nuclear antibody; Antibodies, Antinuclear - analysis; Antibodies, Antinuclear - blood; Arthritis; autoimmunity; autoinflammatory; Cancer; Cardiovascular disease; Chronic illnesses; Cohort Studies; Ethics; Ethnicity; Female; Gender; Health maintenance organizations; Health services; HMOs; Humans; Hyperlipidemia; Hypertension; Israel - epidemiology; Lupus; Male; Medical prognosis; Middle Aged; Mortality; Patients; Population; Proportional Hazards Models; Retrospective Studies; Rheumatic diseases; Rheumatic Diseases - complications; Rheumatic Diseases - mortality; Scleroderma; Serology; Variables
• ISSN: 1648-9144; 1010-660X; 1648-9144
• DOI: 10.3390/medicina61010060

: To explore the potential association between positive ANA serology and all-cause mortality in a large cohort of patients, including those with and without rheumatological conditions and other immune-related diseases. : A retrospective cohort study analyzed all-cause mortality among 205,862 patients from Clalit Health Services (CHS), Israel's largest health maintenance organization (HMO). We compared patients aged 18 and older with positive ANA serology (n = 102,931) to an equal number of ANA-negative controls (n = 102,931). Multivariable Cox regression models were used to assess hazard ratios (HR) for mortality, adjusting for demographic and clinical factors. : ANA positivity was strongly associated with increased mortality (adjusted HR [aHR] 4.62; 95% CI 4.5-4.7, < 0.001). Significant predictors of mortality included male gender (39.2% vs. 24.4%, < 0.001), older age at testing (72.4 ± 13.0 vs. 50.1 ± 17.3 years, < 0.001), and Jewish ethnicity (89.6% vs. 83.2%, < 0.001). Certain ANA patterns, such as mitochondrial (and dense fine speckled (DFS-AC2)), were highly predictive of mortality, with aHRs of 36.14 (95% CI 29.78-43.85) and 29.77 (95% CI 26.58-33.34), respectively. ANA-positive patients with comorbid rheumatological immune-related disorders (RIRDs) demonstrated a higher survival rate compared to those without such a condition (aHR 0.9, 95% CI 0.86-0.95, < 0.001). This finding remained significant after adjusting for several parameters, including age. : ANA positivity is associated with increased all-cause mortality, particularly in individuals without rheumatologic disorders, after adjusting for confounders such as age. This may indicate occult malignancies, cardiovascular pathology, or chronic inflammatory states, necessitating more vigilant surveillance.