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Jan P. Vandenbroucke, MD, PhD; Jacqueline C. M. Witteman; Hans A. Valkenburg, MD, PhD; Johannes W. Boersma, MD; Arnold Cats, MD, PhD; Johannes J. M. Festen, MD, PhD; Arend P. Hartman, MD; Olga Huber-Bruning, MD; Johannes J. Rasker, MD, PhD; Jacobus Weber, MD, PhD

JAMA. 1986;255(10):1299-1303.

Abstract
The use of noncontraceptive hormones before onset of joint disease was compared between 490 perimenopausal and postmenopausal women with rheumatoid arthritis and a control group of 659 women with soft-tissue rheumatologic disorders and/or osteoarthritis. Both groups were sampled randomly from the attendees of five rheumatologic clinics. A negative association was found between the onset of rheumatoid arthritis and the previous use of noncontraceptive hormones (odds ratio, 0.32; 95% confidence interval, 0.16 to 0.64). This association persisted on univariate and multivariate control of potentially confounding variables and on subgroup analysis. The protective effect of oral contraceptives on the development of rheumatoid arthritis was confirmed.

(JAMA 1986;255:1299-1303)

Author Affiliations
From the Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus University, Rotterdam (Drs Vandenbroucke and Valkenburg); the Department of Environmental and Tropical Health, Agricultural University, Wageningen (Dr Vandenbroucke and Ms Witteman); the Department of Rheumatology, Municipal Hospital, Arnhem (Drs Boersma, Hartman, and Weber); the Department of Rheumatology, Academic Hospital, Leiden (Drs Vandenbroucke and Cats); the Department of Rheumatology, de Stadsmaten Hospital (Dr Festen), and the Department of Rheumatology, Ziekenzorg Hospital (Dr Rasker), Enschede; and the Department of Rheumatology, Academic Hospital, Utrecht (Dr Huber-Bruning), the Netherlands.

Footnotes
Deceased.

Reprint requests to the Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus University, PO Box 1738, 3000 DR Rotterdam, the Netherlands (Dr Vandenbroucke).

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