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Updated: Jan 22, 2026
Author Spotlight: Implementation of BIVA for Analyzing Disease Risk Factors in Patients with Low Body Cell Mass
Published on: July 14, 2023
Noninvasive imaging methods for evaluating cardiovascular involvement in patients with rheumatoid arthritis before
Fabiola Atzeni1, Luigi Gianturco2, Laura Boccassini3
1Rheumatology Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Messina, Messina, Italy.
Aim:
To use 2D speckle-tracking echocardiography, and conventional and tissue Doppler echocardiography to detect subclinical left ventricular myocardial dysfunction in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
Methods:
Thirty RA outpatients were assessed before and after 18 months of treatment with anti-TNF drugs, along with 30 healthy controls. Cardiovascular risk was assessed by means of ultrasound carotid assessment and comprehensive echocardiographic evaluation (conventional and speckle-tracking calculation).
Results:
The speckle-tracking analyses were significantly different between the two groups, with global longitudinal strain deformation in the apical four-chamber view being significantly lower in the RA patients (median: 18.78%, interquartile range [IQR]: 15.80-20.82% vs 20.16%, IQR: 19.03-21.89%; [p < 0.05]). After 18 months of biological treatment, global longitudinal strain showed a significant improvement (18.78%, IQR: 15.80-20.82 vs 19.24%, IQR: 18.23-19.98; [p < 0.01]), such as for DAS28 (4.80, IQR: 4.65-5.22 vs 2.78; IQR: 2.52-2.99; [p < 0.01]).
Conclusion:
Speckle-tracking echocardiography showed that left ventricular myocardial longitudinal strain was impaired in the RA patients.
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