Cardiovascular risk factors in inflammatory arthritis

To assess factors that promote atherogenesis and cardiovascular disease (CVD) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Also, to determine how control of inflammation with conventional and biological antirheumatic drugs affects cardiovascular risk.

An excess risk of CVD occurs early in the RA disease course and indeed may predate disease onset. Inflammation is a key driver of CVD risk as it adversely affects body composition, glucose handling and lipid function, especially the atheroprotective role of high-density lipoprotein. Therapies for RA, especially hydroxychloroquine and methotrexate (MTX) have positive effects on cardiovascular risk factors such as glycaemic control and reverse cholesterol transport. MTX and antitumour necrosis factor-alpha drugs also appear to have beneficial effect on CVD event risk, although the data on MTX appears more consistently to favour such a benefit.

Future work needs to understand which aspects of the inflammatory state contribute most to CVD risk and whether specific anti-inflammatory agents, either alone or in combination, afford maximal CVD protection in RA.