Serum lycopene is inversely associated with long-term all-cause mortality in individuals with rheumatoid arthritis: Result from the NHANES III

IntroductionIncreased oxidative stress and/or chronic inflammation may play important roles in the high mortality of individuals with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). As a natural antioxidant, lycopene can alleviate oxidative stress and decrease inflammation. Therefore, we hypothesized that lycopene has a potential to reduce the risk of mortality in individuals with RA.Methods694 RA participants aged 20 years and older from the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were divided into three groups by the tertile rank method according to their serum concentration of lycopene. These participants were followed-up from the date of interviews (1988–1994) to December 31, 2011 for mortality. Mortality, survival functions and hazard ratios of mortality were compared between these three tertile groups.ResultsThe mortality of participants was significantly lower for the third tertile group (46.4%, 95% CI: 40.1–52.7) compared to the first tertile group (66.5%, 95% CI: 60.4–72.6) and the second tertile group (60.0%, 95% CI: 53.6–66.4%) among participants with RA. There was a significant survival difference between the third tertile group and the first tertile group (Log rank p < 0.0001). After adjusting for demographic and other risk factors, RA participants in the third tertile group had a significantly reduced hazard ratio for all-cause mortality (HR = 0.631, 95% CI: 0.433–0.918) compared to RA participants in the first tertile group.ConclusionsThese findings from a nationally representative sample indicate that serum lycopene has a significant association with long-term all-cause mortality in individuals with RA.