WEDNESDAY, Feb. 28, 2024 (HealthDay News) — A history of sinusitis is associated with an increased incidence of rheumatic disease, according to a study published online Feb. 27 in RMD Open.

Vanessa L. Kronzer, M.D., from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and colleagues conducted a population-based case-control study involving individuals meeting classification criteria for rheumatic diseases between 1995 and 2014. Data were analyzed for 1,729 incident rheumatic disease cases and 5,187 controls matched for age, sex, and length of prior electronic health record history. The primary exposure was presence of sinusitis.

The researchers found that preceding sinusitis was associated with an increased risk for several rheumatic diseases after adjustment, including antiphospholipid syndrome, Sjögren disease, vasculitis, and polymyalgia rheumatica (odds ratios [95 percent confidence intervals], 7.0 [1.8 to 27], 2.4 [1.1 to 5.3], 1.4 [1.1 to 1.9], and 1.4 [1.0 to 2.0], respectively). An increased risk for seronegative rheumatoid arthritis was also seen in association with acute sinusitis (odds ratio, 1.8; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.1 to 3.1). The strongest association with any rheumatic disease was seen for sinusitis in the five to 10 years before disease onset (odds ratio, 1.7; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.3 to 2.3). The highest point estimates were seen for never smokers in the association between sinusitis and incident rheumatic diseases (odds ratio, 1.7; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.3 to 2.2).

“These findings point towards a role for sinus inflammation in the presentation, and possibly pathogenesis, of rheumatic disease,” the authors write.

Two authors disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical industry; one author disclosed a provisional patent application.

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