Clinical characteristics of peripheral neuropathy and risk factors in rheumatoid arthritis patients: A retrospective...

To examine the clinical features and possible risk factors of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients with peripheral neuropathy (PN). This study retrospectively analyzed data from 183 RA patients using electronic medical records from January 2018 to December 2022 at Shenzhen Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital. Among them, 8 patients exhibited involvement of multiple mononeuropathy, and 24 patients showed involvement of a single neuropathy. The study compared characteristics between RA patients with and without PN and investigated potential risk factors for PN. Patients with PN were found to be older (P < .05) compared to those without PN, particularly in multiple mononeuropathy patients. The most common symptoms of PN were pain (53.13%) and numbness (46.88%), followed by fatigue (15.63%) and burning sensations (12.50%). Electromyography results indicated that 84.38% of patients with PN experienced both sensory and motor impairment, 3.13% had only motor impairment, and 12.50% had only sensory impairment. Carpal tunnel syndrome was observed in 34.38% of patients with PN. Binary logistic regression analysis revealed age (P = .044) and anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (anti-CCP) antibody level (P = .049) as significant predictors of PN in RA patients. Age and anti-CCP antibody levels emerged as risk factors for PN. PN typically manifests as peripheral nerve symptoms like pain and numbness in RA patients, with a higher incidence of carpal tunnel syndrome.