Oral glucocorticoid therapy and all-cause and cause-specific mortality in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a retrospective cohort study.

Previous studies of glucocorticoid (GC) therapy and mortality have had inconsistent results and have not considered possible perimortal bias-a type of protopathic bias where illness in the latter stages of life influences GC exposure, and might affect the observed relationship between GC use and death. This study aimed to investigate all-cause and cause-specific mortality in association with GC therapy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and explore possible perimortal bias. A retrospective cohort study using the primary care electronic medical records.