Comparative analysis of clinical features in polymyalgia rheumatica with onset after SARS-CoV-2 infection or COVID-19 vaccine administration
| Post-COVID-19 (n=28) | Post-vaccine (n=46) | P value | |
| Age, years | 58±20 | 62±17 | 0.632 |
| Female sex, n (%) | 5 (62.5) | 9 (69.2) | 0.751 |
| N° vaccine doses, n | 2±1 | 2±1 | 0.739 |
| ESR (baseline), mm/h | 50±22 | 59±32 | 0.150 |
| ESR (follow-up), mm/h | 22±18 | 22±15 | 0.954 |
| CRP (baseline), mg/dL | 2.15 (1.46–4.10) | 1.99 (1.62–3.09) | 0.630 |
| CRP (follow-up), mg/dL | 0.60 (0.50–1.00) | 0.50 (0.50–0.95) | 0.910 |
| PMR-AS (baseline), score | 28.3 (25.2–33.0) | 24.8 (23.7–27.5) | 0.392 |
| PMR-AS (follow-up), score | 8.44 (5.4–10.0) | 6.43 (4.6–7.0) | 0.268 |
| Average follow-up, weeks | 8±5 | 14±13 | 0.004 |
| Treatment | |||
| Paracetamol, n (%) | 1 (3.6) | 4 (8.7) | 0.666 |
| NSAIDs, n (%) | 2 (7.1) | 7 (15.2) | 0.303 |
| GCs, n (%) | 28 (100.0) | 43 (93.5) | 0.168 |
| MTX, n (%) | 2 (7.1) | 9 (19.6) | 0.145 |
CRP, C reactive protein; ESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate; GCs, glucocorticoids; MTX, methotrexate; NSAIDs, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs; PMR-AS, polymyalgia rheumatica—activity score.