Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Patients with Rheumatic Diseases

Area of Science:

• Rheumatology
• Cardiology
• Immunology

Background:

• Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is associated with a significantly increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), exceeding 1.5 times the general population.
• Subclinical atherosclerosis accelerates in RA patients even before diagnosis, contributing to elevated CVD risk.
• Inflammation in RA may directly cause myocardial disease, increasing risks of heart failure and mortality.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between rheumatoid arthritis and cardiovascular disease.
• To highlight the role of subclinical atherosclerosis and dyslipidemia in RA-associated CVD.
• To emphasize the importance of managing RA disease activity and cardiovascular risk factors.

Main Methods:

• Review of evidence linking RA to CVD.
• Analysis of dyslipidemia markers in RA, focusing on lipoproteins and apolipoproteins.
• Assessment of how traditional risk factors may underestimate CVD risk in RA.

Main Results:

• Cardiovascular disease risk is over 1.5 times higher in RA patients.
• Lipoprotein and apolipoprotein levels are more indicative of dyslipidemia in RA than cholesterol.
• Existing risk assessment tools may underestimate CVD risk in RA due to underestimation of prior risk factor levels.

Conclusions:

• Aggressive management of RA disease activity and cardiovascular risk factors is essential to mitigate CVD risk.
• Understanding the accelerated atherosclerosis and potential myocardial effects of inflammation in RA is key.
• Improved risk stratification considering RA-specific factors is needed.