{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,10]],"date-time":"2025-10-10T01:43:23Z","timestamp":1760060603936,"version":"build-2065373602"},"reference-count":27,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"18","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,13]],"date-time":"2025-09-13T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1757721600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["JCM"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Introduction: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is known to affect the musculoskeletal system and, consequently, may lead to sarcopenia, but the role of respiratory muscle involvement in RA patients is unclear. Methods: This prospective, exploratory, single-center, matched-pair analysis study was designed to compare respiratory muscle strength and handgrip strength in RA patients and controls. Results: RA patients with low disease activity as estimated from the Disease Activity Score 28 (2.3 \u00b1 1.2) and without signs of interstitial lung disease (n = 36, 72% female, 28% smoker, mean age 48 + 15 years, mean forced vital capacity 3.9 \u00b1 1.0 L, 98% \u00b1 11% predicted) and control subjects (n = 36, 72% female, 11% smoker, mean age 48 + 14 years, mean forced vital capacity 4.1 \u00b1 1.1 L, 98% \u00b1 16% predicted) were well balanced. Maximal inspiratory mouth pressure (PImax, primary endpoint) tended to be lower in RA patients, but this was statistically not significant (\u22120.9 kPa; 95%CI = \u22122.11\/0.32). However, RA patients more frequently had PImax values below the lower limit of normal (OR 1.74 kPa; 95% CI 0.65\/4.77). RA patients had lower handgrip strength (\u22125.97 kg; 95%CI = \u22129.43\/\u22122.50). In addition, PImax was correlated to handgrip strength both in RA patients (R = 0.51, p = 0.0017) and controls (R = 0.48, p = 0.0029) and to the 6-minute walking distance (RA-patients: R = 0.30, p = 0.075; controls: R = 0.52, p = 0.0012). Conclusions: Even though the primary endpoint has not been reached, an impairment of respiratory muscle strength in RA cannot be excluded at least in a subset of patients. Further studies also involving RA patients with more disease activity are needed.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/jcm14186455","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,15]],"date-time":"2025-09-15T11:51:43Z","timestamp":1757937103000},"page":"6455","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Respiratory Muscle Strength in Rheumatoid Arthritis"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"14","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0002-9256-3144","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Melanie","family":"Berger","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pneumonology, Cologne Merheim Hospital, Kliniken der Stadt K\u00f6ln gGmbH, University Witten\/Herdecke, 51109 Cologne, Germany"},{"name":"Medical Department, University Witten\/Herdecke, 58448 Witten, Germany"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Maximilian","family":"Zimmermann","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pneumonology, Cologne Merheim Hospital, Kliniken der Stadt K\u00f6ln gGmbH, University Witten\/Herdecke, 51109 Cologne, Germany"},{"name":"Medical Department, University Witten\/Herdecke, 58448 Witten, Germany"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Leon","family":"Thomas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Department, University Witten\/Herdecke, 58448 Witten, Germany"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Johannes","family":"Strunk","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Rheumatology, Clinic Porz Rhein gGmbH, 51149 Cologne, Germany"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0008-1579-2908","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Doreen","family":"Kroppen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pneumonology, Cologne Merheim Hospital, Kliniken der Stadt K\u00f6ln gGmbH, University Witten\/Herdecke, 51109 Cologne, Germany"},{"name":"Medical Department, University Witten\/Herdecke, 58448 Witten, Germany"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Daniel Sebastian","family":"Majorski","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pneumonology, Cologne Merheim Hospital, Kliniken der Stadt K\u00f6ln gGmbH, University Witten\/Herdecke, 51109 Cologne, Germany"},{"name":"Medical Department, University Witten\/Herdecke, 58448 Witten, Germany"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Sarah Bettina","family":"Stanzel","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pneumonology, Cologne Merheim Hospital, Kliniken der Stadt K\u00f6ln gGmbH, University Witten\/Herdecke, 51109 Cologne, Germany"},{"name":"Medical Department, University Witten\/Herdecke, 58448 Witten, Germany"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Maximilian","family":"Wollsching-Strobel","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pneumonology, Cologne Merheim Hospital, Kliniken der Stadt K\u00f6ln gGmbH, University Witten\/Herdecke, 51109 Cologne, Germany"},{"name":"Medical Department, University Witten\/Herdecke, 58448 Witten, Germany"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Maxi","family":"Schulz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Medical Statistics, University Medical Center G\u00f6ttingen, University G\u00f6ttingen, 37073 G\u00f6ttingen, Germany"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7574-2672","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Wolfram","family":"Windisch","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pneumonology, Cologne Merheim Hospital, Kliniken der Stadt K\u00f6ln gGmbH, University Witten\/Herdecke, 51109 Cologne, Germany"},{"name":"Medical Department, University Witten\/Herdecke, 58448 Witten, Germany"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Falk","family":"Schumacher","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Department, University Witten\/Herdecke, 58448 Witten, Germany"},{"name":"Department of Rheumatology, Clinic Porz Rhein gGmbH, 51149 Cologne, Germany"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,13]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"(2024, July 30). 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