Time interval between the onset of connective tissue disease symptoms and first contact with a rheumatologist: results from the German National Database of collaborative arthritis centers.

"Declarations Conflict of interestGC, MS and AK have received grant support to their institution from GSK, AstraZeneca and UCB Pharma. AK has received payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing or educational events from Novartis Pharma GmbH, Rheumatologische Fortbildungsakademie and Streamed up! GmbH; support for attending meetings and/or travel from AGJR and Pfizer. GC has received support for attending meetings from Pfizer; personal fees/honoraria from lectures, presentations and/or advisory boards from Otsuka Pharma, AstraZeneca, GSK and Rheumatologische Fortbildungsakademie. MS has received personal consulting fees and honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing or educational events from Abbvie, AstraZeneca, BMS, Boehringer-Ingelheim, Chugai, GSK, Janssen-Cilag, Lilly, Novartis, Otsuka, Pfizer, Protagen, Roche, Sanofi-Aventis and UCB. JC has received payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing or educational events from Rheumatologische Fortbildungsakademie and Janssen. Ethical approvalThe application was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Charité (number EA1/196/06). Conflict of interest GC, MS and AK have received grant support to their institution from GSK, AstraZeneca and UCB Pharma. AK has received payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing or educational events from Novartis Pharma GmbH, Rheumatologische Fortbildungsakademie and Streamed up! GmbH; support for attending meetings and/or travel from AGJR and Pfizer. GC has received support for attending meetings from Pfizer; personal fees/honoraria from lectures, presentations and/or advisory boards from Otsuka Pharma, AstraZeneca, GSK and Rheumatologische Fortbildungsakademie. MS has received personal consulting fees and honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing or educational events from Abbvie, AstraZeneca, BMS, Boehringer-Ingelheim, Chugai, GSK, Janssen-Cilag, Lilly, Novartis, Otsuka, Pfizer, Protagen, Roche, Sanofi-Aventis and UCB. JC has received payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing or educational events from Rheumatologische Fortbildungsakademie and Janssen."

"Funding Open Access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL. The National Database of the German Collaborative Arthritis centers is supported by the Association of Regional Cooperative Rheumatology Centres, the German Society for Rheumatology and joint contributions to the Rheumatological Training Academy and the German Rheumatism Research Centre by the following members of the Working Group of Corporate Members of the German Society for Rheumatology: AbbVie, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Galapagos, GlaxoSmithKline, Lilly, Medac, MSD (Merck&Co), Pfizer, Sanofi-Aventis, UCB Pharma via a joint grant to the Rheumatological Training Academy."