Previous surveys among Indians with RA have shown a significant association with HLA DR4 in North India and with HLA DR1 in the UK. We studied a migrant Indian population in South Africa to determine their genetic associations with RA. A group of 121 unrelated RA patients from three communities (Hindi, Muslims and Tamils) were studied. The Muslims showed a significant association with DR4 but the Hindi and Tamils showed a significant association with DR10. This survey shows that the Indian community is a heterogenous group regarding their HLA associations with RA and different associations are noted in the various communities. © 1994 British Society for Rheumatology.

Rheumatoid arthritis HLA antigens Indians Ethnic groups

immigrant India race difference Molecular Sequence Data Indian human controlled study priority journal Great Britain South Africa male female Article HLA DR antigen Support, Non-U.S. Gov't adult major clinical study United Kingdom Transients and Migrants genetic association Arthritis, Rheumatoid rheumatoid arthritis HLA DR4 antigen HLA-DR Antigens Amino Acid Sequence Middle Age