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Aim:  To determine the frequency of anti‐cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody (anti‐CCP) in a group of patients with rheumatoid arthritis and another group with other rheumatic diseases.

Patients and methods:  Anti‐CCP1 and rheumatoid factor (RF) titres were determined in 320 serum samples; 136 from RA patients, 184 from control patients (165 patients with rheumatic diseases other than RA, and 21 patients with lymphoproliferative diseases).

Results:  The sensitivity of Anti‐CCP was 62.5% (95% CI: 53–70%) for the diagnosis of RA with a specificity of 89.1% (95% CI: 83–93%). The sensitivity of RF was 85.3% (95% CI: 79–91%). The specificity was 64.7% (95% CI: 57–71%).

Conclusions:  Anti‐CCP1 has not very high specificity for RA regarding other rheumatic disease. However it is still very helpful for the diagnosis of RA.