European Journal of Internal Medicine
Volume 20, Issue 4 , Pages 348-354 , July 2009

Vascular disease in rheumatoid arthritis: From subclinical lesions to cardiovascular risk

  • Coman Tanasescu

      Affiliations

    • Department of Internal Medicine, Colentina Clinical Hospital, Bucharest, Romania
    • University of Medicine and Pharmacy “Carol Davila”, Bucharest, Romania
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Department of Internal Medicine, Colentina Hospital, Soseaua Stefan cel Mare 19-21, sect. 2, 020125 Bucharest, Romania. Tel./fax: +40 212107326.
    • ,
  • Ciprian Jurcut

      Affiliations

    • 3rd Internal Medicine Department, “Carol Davila” Central Clinical Emergency Military Hospital, Bucharest, Romania
    • ,
  • Ruxandra Jurcut

      Affiliations

    • Department of Cardiology, “Prof. Dr. C. C. Iliescu” Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, Bucharest, Romania
    • University of Medicine and Pharmacy “Carol Davila”, Bucharest, Romania
    • ,
  • Carmen Ginghina

      Affiliations

    • Department of Cardiology, “Prof. Dr. C. C. Iliescu” Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, Bucharest, Romania
    • University of Medicine and Pharmacy “Carol Davila”, Bucharest, Romania

Received 13 March 2008 ,Revised 31 July 2008 ,Accepted 4 September 2008.

References 

  1. Pham T, Gossec L, Constantin A, Pavy S, Bruckert E, Cantagrel A, et al. Cardiovascular risk and rheumatoid arthritis: clinical practice guidelines based on published evidence and expert opinion. Joint Bone Spine. 2006;73:379–387
  2. Jurcut C, Jurcut R, Tanasescu C. Cardiovascular risk and rheumatoid arthritis: from mechanisms of atherosclerosis to therapeutic approach. Rom J Intern Med. 2004;42:659–669
  3. Liang KP, Liang KV, Matteson EL, McClelland RL, Christianson TJ, Turesson C. Incidence of noncardiac vascular disease in rheumatoid arthritis and relationship to extraarticular disease manifestations. Arthritis Rheum. 2006;54:642–648
  4. Dawson JK, Goodson NG, Graham DR, Lynch MP. Raised pulmonary artery pressures measured with Doppler echocardiography in rheumatoid arthritis patients. Rheumatology. 2000;39:1320–1325
  5. Genta MS, Genta RM, Gabay C. Systemic rheumatoid vasculitis: a review. Semin Arthritis Rheum. 2006;36:88–98
  6. Koutkia P, Mylonakis E, Rounds S, Erickson A. Leucocytoclastic vasculitis: an update for the clinician. Scand J Rheumatol. 2001;30:315–322
  7. Wallberg-Jonsson S, Ohman ML, Dahlqvist SR. Cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patients with seropositive rheumatoid arthritis in Northern Sweden. J Rheumatol. 1997;24:445–451
  8. Solomon DH, Karlson EW, Rimm EB, Cannuscio CC, Mandl LA, Manson JE, et al. Cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in women diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. Circulation. 2003;107:1303–1307
  9. Fischer LM, Schlienger RG, Matter C, Jick H, Meier CR. Effect of rheumatoid arthritis or systemic lupus erythematosus on the risk of first-time acute myocardial infarction. Am J Cardiol. 2004;93:198–200
  10. Turesson C, Jarenros A, Jacobsson L. Increased incidence of cardiovascular disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: results from a community based study. Ann Rheum Dis. 2004;63:952–955
  11. Maradit-Kremers H, Crowson CS, Nicola PJ, Ballman KV, Roger VL, Jacobsen SJ, et al. Increased unrecognized coronary heart disease and sudden deaths in rheumatoid arthritis: a population-based cohort study. Arthritis Rheum. 2005;52:402–411
  12. Watson DJ, Rhodes T, Guess HA. All-cause mortality and vascular events among patients with rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, or no arthritis in the UK General Practice Research Database. J Rheumatol. 2003;30:1196–1202
  13. Solomon DH, Goodson NJ, Katz JN, Weinblatt ME, Avorn J, Setoguchi S, et al. Patterns of cardiovascular risk in rheumatoid arthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 2006;65:1608–1612
  14. Han C, Robinson DW, Hackett MV, Paramore LC, Fraeman KH, Bala MV. Cardiovascular disease and risk factors in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis. J Rheumatol. 2006;33:2167–2172
  15. Gonzalez-Juanatey C, Testa A, Garcia-Castelo A, Garcia-Porrua C, Llorca J, Vidan J, et al. HLA-DRB1 status affects endothelial function in treated patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Am J Med. 2003;114:647–652
  16. Bergholm R, Leirisalo-Repo M, Vehkavaara S, Mäkimattila S, Taskinen MR, Yki-Järvinen H. Impaired responsiveness to NO in newly diagnosed patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2002;22:1637–1641
  17. Hansel S, Lassig G, Pistrosch F, Passauer J. Endothelial dysfunction in young patients with long-term rheumatoid arthritis and low disease activity. Atherosclerosis. 2003;170:177–180
  18. Vaudo G, Marchesi S, Gerli R, Allegrucci R, Giordano A, Siepi D, et al. Endothelial dysfunction in young patients with rheumatoid arthritis and low-disease activity. Ann Rheum Dis. 2004;63:31–35
  19. Dessein PH, Joffe BI, Singh S. Biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction, cardiovascular risk factors and atherosclerosis in rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Res Ther. 2005;7:R634–R643
  20. Arnett DK, Evans GW, Riley WA. Arterial stiffness: a new cardiovascular risk factor?. Am J Epidemiol. 1994;140:669–682
  21. Roman MJ, Devereux RB, Schwartz JE, Lockshin MD, Paget SA, Davis A, et al. Arterial stiffness in chronic inflammatory diseases. Hypertension. 2005;46:194–199
  22. Klocke R, Cockcroft JR, Taylor GJ, Hall IR, Blake DR. Arterial stiffness and central blood pressure, as determined by pulse wave analysis, in rheumatoid arthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 2003;62:414–418
  23. Arosio E, De Marchi S, Rigoni A, Prior M, Delva P, Lechi A. Forearm haemodinamics, arterial stiffness and microcirculatory reactivity in rheumatoid arthritis. J Hypertens. 2007;25:1273–1278
  24. Turesson C, Jacobsson L, Rydén Ahlgren A, Sturfelt G, Wollmer P, Länne T. Increased stiffness of the abdominal aorta in women with rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatology. 2005;44:896–901
  25. Mäki-Petäjä KM, Hall FC, Booth AD, Wallace SM, Yasmin , Bearcroft PW, et al. Rheumatoid arthritis is associated with increased aortic pulse-wave velocity, which is reduced by anti-tumor necrosis factor-α therapy. Circulation. 2006;114:1185–1192
  26. Avalos I, Chung CP, Oeser A, Gebretsadik T, Shintani A, Kurnik D, et al. Increased augmentation index in rheumatoid arthritis and its relationship to coronary artery atherosclerosis. J Rheumatol. 2007;34:2388–2394
  27. Rugină M, Ciobanu-Jurcuţ R, Jurcuţ C, Mihăilă M, Apetrei E. Subclinical atherosclerosis, carotid intima-media thickness and the cardiovascular risk. Rom J Intern Med. 2003;41:357–363
  28. Carotti M, Salaffi F, Mangiacotti M, Cerioni A, Giuseppetti GM, Grassi W. Atherosclerosis in rheumatoid arthritis: the role of high-resolution B mode ultrasound in the measurement of the arterial intima-media thickness. Reumatismo. 2007;59:38–49
  29. del Rincón I, Freeman GL, Haas RW, O'Leary DH, Escalante A. Relative contribution of cardiovascular risk factors and rheumatoid arthritis clinical manifestations to atherosclerosis. Arthritis Rheum. 2005;52:3413–3423
  30. Kumeda Y, Inaba M, Goto H, Nagata M, Henmi Y, Furumitsu Y, et al. Increased thickness of the arterial intima-media detected by ultrasonography in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Rheum. 2002;46:1489–1497
  31. Park YB, Ahn CW, Choi HK, Lee SH, In BH, Lee HC, et al. Atherosclerosis in rheumatoid arthritis: morphologic evidence obtained by carotid ultrasound. Arthritis Rheum. 2002;46:1714–1719
  32. La Montagna G, Cacciapuoti F, Buono R, Manzella D, Mennillo GA, Arciello A, et al. Insulin resistance is an independent risk factor for atherosclerosis in rheumatoid arthritis. Diab Vasc Dis Res. 2007;4:130–135
  33. Gonzalez-Gay MA, Gonzalez-Juanatey C, Piñeiro A, Garcia-Porrua C, Testa A, Llorca J. High-grade C-reactive protein elevation correlates with accelerated atherogenesis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. J Rheumatol. 2005;32:1219–1223
  34. Del Rincón I, Williams K, Stern MP, Freeman GL, O'Leary DH, Escalante A. Association between carotid atherosclerosis and markers of inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis patients and healthy subjects. Arthritis Rheum. 2003;48:1833–1840
  35. Sherer Y, Gerli R, Gilburd B, Bartoloni Bocci E, Vaudo G, Mannarino E, et al. Thickened carotid artery intima-media in rheumatoid arthritis is associated with elevated anticardiolipin antibodies. Lupus. 2007;16:259–264
  36. Daza L, Aguirre M, Jimenez M, Herrera R, Bollain JJ. Common carotid intima-media thickness and von Willebrand factor serum levels in rheumatoid arthritis female patients without cardiovascular risk factors. Clin Rheumatol. 2007;26:533–537
  37. Pamuk ON, Unlü E, Cakir N. Role of insulin resistance in increased frequency of atherosclerosis detected by carotid ultrasonography in rheumatoid arthritis. J Rheumatol. 2006;33:2447–2452
  38. Jonsson SW, Backman C, Johnson O, Karp K, Lundström E, Sundqvist KG, et al. Increased prevalence of atherosclerosis in patients with medium term rheumatoid arthritis. J Rheumatol. 2001;28:2597–2602
  39. Dessein PH, Norton GR, Woodiwiss AJ, Joffe BI, Wolfe F. Influence of nonclassical cardiovascular risk factors on the accuracy of predicting subclinical atherosclerosis in rheumatoid arthritis. J Rheumatol. 2007;34:943–951
  40. Dessein PH, Joffe BI, Veller MG, Stevens BA, Tobias M, Reddi K, et al. Traditional and nontraditional cardiovascular risk factors are associated with atherosclerosis in rheumatoid arthritis. J Rheumatol. 2005;32:435–442
  41. Gullu H, Erdogan D, Caliskan M, Tok D, Yildirim E, Ulus T, et al. Interrelationship between noninvasive predictors of atherosclerosis: transthoracic coronary flow reserve, flow-mediated dilation, carotid intima-media thickness, aortic stiffness, aortic distensibility, elastic modulus, and brachial artery diameter. Echocardiography. 2006;23:835–842
  42. Ciftci O, Yilmaz S, Topcu S, Gullu H, Erdogan D, Pamuk BO, et al. Impaired coronary microvascular function and increased intima-media thickness in rheumatoid arthritis. Atherosclerosis. 2008;198:332–337
  43. Chung CP, Oeser A, Raggi P, Gebretsadik T, Shintani AK, Sokka T, et al. Increased coronary-artery atherosclerosis in rheumatoid arthritis: relationship to disease duration and cardiovascular risk factors. Arthritis Rheum. 2005;52:3045–3053
  44. Kao AH, Krishnaswami S, Cunningham A, Edmundowicz D, Morel PA, Kuller LH, et al. Subclinical coronary artery calcification and relationship to disease duration in women with rheumatoid arthritis. J Rheumatol. 2008;35:61–69
  45. Gonzalez A, Maradit Kremers H, Crowson CS, Ballman KV, Roger VL, Jacobsen SJ, et al. Do cardiovascular risk factors confer the same risk for cardiovascular outcomes in rheumatoid arthritis patients as in non-rheumatoid arthritis patients?. Ann Rheum Dis. 2008;67:64–69
  46. Kremers HM, Nicola PJ, Crowson CS, Ballman KV, Gabriel SE. Prognostic importance of low body mass index in relation to cardiovascular mortality in rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Rheum. 2004;50:3450–3457
  47. McMahon M, Grossman J, FitzGerald J, Dahlin-Lee E, Wallace DJ, Thong BY, et al. Proinflammatory high-density lipoprotein as a biomarker for atherosclerosis in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Rheum. 2006;54:2541–2549
  48. Charles-Schoeman C, Khanna D, Furst DE, McMahon M, Reddy ST, Fogelman AM, et al. Effects of high-dose atorvastatin on antiinflammatory properties of high density lipoprotein in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a pilot study. J Rheumatol. 2007;34:1459–1464
  49. Ross R. Atherosclerosis — an inflammatory disease. N Engl J Med. 1999;340:115–126
  50. Benagiano M, Azzurri A, Ciervo A, Amedei A, Tamburini C, Ferrari M, et al. T helper type 1 lymphocytes drive inflammation in human atherosclerotic lesions. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2003;100:6658–6663
  51. Abou-Raya A, Abou-Raya S. Inflammation: a pivotal link between autoimmune diseases and atherosclerosis. Autoimmun Rev. 2006;5:331–337
  52. Sattar N, McCarey DW, Capell H, McInnes IB. Explaining how “high-grade” systemic inflammation accelerates vascular risk in rheumatoid arthritis. Circulation. 2003;108:2957–2963
  53. Jacobsson LT, Turesson C, Hanson RL, Pillemer S, Sievers ML, Pettitt DJ, et al. Joint swelling as a predictor of death from cardiovascular disease in a population study of Pima Indians. Arthritis Rheum. 2001;44:1170–1176
  54. Turesson C, McClelland RL, Christianson TJ, Matteson EL. Severe extra-articular disease manifestations are associated with an increased risk of first ever cardiovascular events in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 2007;66:70–75
  55. Goodson NJ, Wiles NJ, Lunt M, Barrett EM, Silman AJ, Symmons DP. Mortality in early inflammatory polyarthritis: cardiovascular mortality is increased in seropositive patients. Arthritis Rheum. 2002;46:2010–2019
  56. Ridker PM, Buring JE, Shih J, Matias M, Hennekens CH. Prospective study of C-reactive protein and the risk of future cardiovascular events among apparently healthy women. Circulation. 1998;98:731–733
  57. Ridker PM, Cushman M, Stampfer MJ, Tracy RP, Hennekens CH. Inflammation, aspirin, and the risk of cardiovascular disease in apparently healthy men. N Engl J Med. 1997;336:973–979
  58. Apetrei E, Ciobanu-Jurcut R, Rugina M, Gavrila A, Uscatescu V. C-reactive protein, prothrombotic imbalance and endothelial dysfunction in acute coronary syndromes without ST elevation. Rom J Intern Med. 2004;42:95–102
  59. Gavrila A, Ciobanu-Jurcut R, Rugina M, Serban I, Puscariu T, Uscatescu V, et al. Plasmatic levels of homocysteine and C-reactive protein: which one correlates better with TIMI score in unstable angina patients?. Arch Mal Coeur Vaiss. 2003;96(suppl. II):62
  60. Jialal I, Devaraj S, Venugopal SK. C-reactive protein: risk marker or mediator in atherosclerosis?. Hypertension. 2004;44:6–11
  61. Goodson NJ, Symmons DP, Scott DG, Bunn D, Lunt M, Silman AJ. Baseline levels of C-reactive protein and prediction of death from cardiovascular disease in patients with inflammatory polyarthritis: a ten-year followup study of a primary care-based inception cohort. Arthritis Rheum. 2005;52:2293–2299
  62. Pearson TA, Mensah GA, Alexander RW, Anderson JL, Cannon RO 3rd, Criqui M, et al. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; American Heart Association. Markers of inflammation and cardiovascular disease: application to clinical and public health practice: a statement for healthcare professionals from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Heart Association. Circulation. 2003;107:499–511
  63. Choy EH, Panayi GS. Cytokine pathways and joint inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis. N Engl J Med. 2001;344:907–916
  64. Mattey DL, Glossop JR, Nixon NB, Dawes PT. Circulating levels of tumor necrosis factor receptors are highly predictive of mortality in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Rheum. 2007;56:3940–3948
  65. Ridker PM, Rifai N, Pfeffer , Sacks F, Lepage S, Braunwald E. Elevation of TNF-α and increased risk of recurrent coronary events after myocardial infarction. Circulation. 2000;101:2149–2153
  66. Blake GJ, Ridker PM. Tumour necrosis factor-α, inflammatory biomarkers, and atherogenesis. Eur Heart J. 2002;23:345–347
  67. Moller DE. Potential role of TNF-alpha in the pathogenesis of insulin resistance and type-2 diabetes. Trends Endocrinol Metab. 2000;6:212–217
  68. Choy E. Interleukin 6 receptor as a target for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 2003;62(Suppl II):ii68–ii69
  69. Ikeda U, Ito T, Shimada K. Interleukin-6 and acute coronary syndrome. Clin Cardiol. 2001;24:701–704
  70. Klimiuk PA, Sierakowski S, Latosiewicz R, Cylwik JP, Cylwik B, Skowronski J, et al. Soluble adhesion molecules (ICAM-1, VCAM-1,and E-selectin) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in patients with distinct variants of rheumatoid arthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 2002;61:804–809
  71. Mulvihill NT, Foley JB, Crean P, Walsh M. Prediction of cardiovascular risk using soluble cell adhesion molecules. Eur Heart J. 2002;23:1569–1574
  72. Grisar J, Aletaha D, Steiner CW, Kapral T, Steiner S, Seidinger D, et al. Depletion of endothelial progenitor cells in the peripheral blood of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Circulation. 2005;111:204–211
  73. Werner N, Kosiol S, Schiegl T, Ahlers P, Walenta K, Link A, et al. Circulating endothelial progenitor cells and cardiovascular outcomes. N Engl J Med. 2005;353:999–1007
  74. Grisar J, Aletaha D, Steiner CW, Kapral T, Steiner S, Säemann M, et al. Endothelial progenitor cells in active rheumatoid arthritis: effects of tumour necrosis factor and glucocorticoid therapy. Ann Rheum Dis. 2007;66:1284–1288
  75. Jono S, Ikari Y, Shioi A, Mori K, Miki T, Hara K, et al. Serum osteoprotegerin levels are associated with the presence and severity of coronary artery disease. Circulation. 2002;106:1192–1194
  76. Asanuma Y, Chung CP, Oeser A, Solus JF, Avalos I, Gebretsadik T, et al. Serum osteoprotegerin is increased and independently associated with coronary-artery atherosclerosis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Atherosclerosis. 2007;195:e135–e141
  77. Ziolkowska M, Kurowska M, Radzikowska A, Luszczykiewicz G, Wiland P, Dziewczopolski W, et al. High levels of osteoprotegerin and soluble receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa B ligand in serum of rheumatoid arthritis patients and their normalization after anti-tumor necrosis factor alpha treatment. Arthritis Rheum. 2002;46:1744–1753
  78. Jurcut C, Jurcut R, Blaj S, Tanasescu C. Inflammation and platelet activation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: possible determinants of increased cardiovascular risk. Atheroscler Suppl. 2006;7(3):414;[P12:308]
  79. Arlestig L, Wållberg Jonsson S, Stegmayr B, Rantapää-Dahlqvist S. Polymorphism of genes related to cardiovascular disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Clin Exp Rheumatol. 2007;25:866–871
  80. Panoulas VF, Milionis HJ, Douglas KM, Nightingale P, Kita MD, Klocke R, et al. Association of serum uric acid with cardiovascular disease in rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2007;46:1466–1470
  81. Raterman HG, van Halm VP, Voskuyl AE, Simsek S, Dijkmans BA, Nurmohamed MT. Rheumatoid arthritis is associated with a high prevalence of hypothyroidism that amplifies its cardiovascular risk. Ann Rheum Dis. 2008;67:229–232
  82. Hernanz A, Plaza A, Martin-Mola E, De Miguel E. Increased plasma levels of homocysteine and other thiol compounds in rheumatoid arthritis women. Clin Biochem. 1999;32:65–70
  83. Chung CP, Oeser A, Solus JF, Avalos I, Gebretsadik T, Shintani A, et al. Prevalence of the metabolic syndrome is increased in rheumatoid arthritis and is associated with coronary atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis. 2008;196:756–763
  84. Gonzalez-Gay MA, Gonzalez-Juanatey C, Lopez-Diaz MJ, Piñeiro A, Garcia-Porrua C, Miranda-Filloy JA, et al. HLA-DRB1 and persistent chronic inflammation contribute to cardiovascular events and cardiovascular mortality in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Rheum. 2007;57:125–132
  85. van den Berg MH, de Boer IG, le Cessie S, Breedveld FC, Vliet Vlieland TP. Are patients with rheumatoid arthritis less physically active than the general population?. J Clin Rheumatol. 2007;13:181–186
  86. Graham I, Atar D, Borch-Johnsen K, Boysen G, Burell G, Cifkova R, et al. Fourth Joint Task Force of the European Society of Cardiology and Other Societies on Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in Clinical Practice European guidelines on cardiovascular disease prevention in clinical practice: executive summary. Eur Heart J. 2007;28:2375–2414
  87. Panoulas VF, Douglas KM, Stavropoulos-Kalinoglou A, Metsios GS, Nightingale P, Kita MD, et al. Long-term exposure to medium-dose glucocorticoid therapy associates with hypertension in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2008;47:72–75
  88. Panoulas VF, Douglas KM, Milionis HJ, Stavropoulos-Kalinglou A, Nightingale P, Kita MD, et al. Prevalence and associations of hypertension and its control in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2007;46:1477–1482
  89. Solomon DH, Avorn J, Katz JN, Weinblatt ME, Setoguchi S, Levin R, et al. Immunosuppressive medications and hospitalization for cardiovascular events in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Rheum. 2006;54:3790–3798
  90. Davis JM, Maradit Kremers H, Crowson CS, Nicola PJ, Ballman KV, Therneau TM, et al. Glucocorticoids and cardiovascular events in rheumatoid arthritis: a population-based cohort study. Arthritis Rheum. 2007;56:820–830
  91. Hafström I, Rohani M, Deneberg S, Wörnert M, Jogestrand T, Frostegård J. Effects of low-dose prednisolone on endothelial function, atherosclerosis, and traditional risk factors for atherosclerosis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis — a randomized study. J Rheumatol. 2007;34:1810–1816
  92. Solomon SD, Wittes J, Finn PV, Fowler R, Viner J, Bertagnolli MM, et al. Cardiovascular risk of celecoxib in six randomized placebo-controlled trials: the Cross Trial Safety analysis. Circulation. 2008;117:2104–2113
  93. Antman EM, Bennett JS, Daugherty A, Furberg C, Roberts H, Taubert KA. Use of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs: an update for clinicians: a scientific statement from the American Heart Association. Circulation. 2007;115:1634–1642
  94. Kearney PM, Baigent C, Godwin J, Halls H, Emberson JR, Patrono C. Do selective cyclo-oxygenase-2 inhibitors and traditional non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs increase the risk of atherothrombosis? Meta-analysis of randomized trials. BMJ. 2006;332:1302–1308
  95. McGettigan P, Henry D. Cardiovascular risk and inhibition of Cyclooxygenase: a systematic review of the observational studies of selective and nonselective inhibitors of Cyclooxygenase 2. JAMA. 2006;296:1633–1644
  96. Choi HK, Hernán MA, Seeger JD, Robins JM, Wolfe F. Methotrexate and mortality in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a prospective study. Lancet. 2002;359:1173–1177
  97. Wallberg-Jonsson S, Ohman M, Rantapaa-Dahlqvist S. Which factors are related to the presence of atherosclerosis in rheumatoid arthritis?. Scand J Rheumatol. 2004;33:373–379
  98. van Halm VP, Nurmohamed MT, Twisk JW, Dijkmans BA, Voskuyl AE. Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs are associated with a reduced risk for cardiovascular disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a case control study. Arthritis Res Ther. 2006;8:R151
  99. Munro R, Morrison E, McDonald AG, Hunter JA, Madhok R, Capell HA. Effect of disease modifying agents on the lipid profiles of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 1997;56:374–377
  100. Wasko MC, Hubert HB, Lingala VB, Elliott JR, Luggen ME, Fries JF, et al. Hydroxychloroquine and risk of diabetes in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. JAMA. 2007;298:187–193
  101. Hürlimann D, Forster A, Noll G, Enseleit F, Chenevard R, Distler O, et al. Anti-tumor necrosis factor-α treatment improves endothelial function in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Circulation. 2002;106:2184–2187
  102. Cardillo C, Schinzari F, Mores N, Mettimano M, Melina D, Zoli A, et al. Intravascular tumor necrosis factor-α blockade reverses endothelial dysfunction in rheumatoid arthritis. Clin Pharmacol Ther. 2006;80:275–281
  103. Gonzalez-Juanatey C, Testa A, Garcia-Castelo A, Garcia-Porrua C, Llorca J, Gonzalez-Gay MA. Active but transient improvement of endothelial function in rheumatoid arthritis patients undergoing long-term treatment with anti-tumor necrosis factor alpha antibody. Arthritis Rheum. 2004;51:447–450
  104. Van Dornum S, McColl G, Wicks IP. Tumor necrosis factor antagonists improve disease activity but not arterial stiffness in rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatology. 2005;44:1428–1432
  105. Seriolo B, Paolino S, Sulli A, Fasciolo D, Cutolo M. Effects of anti-TNF-alpha treatment on lipid profile in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2006;1069:414–419
  106. Vis M, Nurmohamed MT, Wolbink G, Voskuyl AE, de Koning M, van de Stadt R, et al. Short term effects of infliximab on the lipid profile in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. J Rheumatol. 2005;32:252–255
  107. Popa C, van den Hoogen FH, Radstake TR, Netea MG, Eijsbouts AE, den Heijer M, et al. Modulation of lipoprotein plasma concentrations during long-term anti-TNF therapy in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 2007;66:1503–1507
  108. McCarey DW, McInnes IB, Madhok R, Hampson R, Scherbakov O, Ford I, et al. Trial of atorvastatin in rheumatoid arthritis (TARA): double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled trial. Lancet. 2004;363:2015–2021
  109. O'Driscoll G, Green D, Taylor RR. Simvastatin, an HMG-coenzyme A reductase inhibitor, improves endothelial function within 1 month. Circulation. 1997;95:1126–1131
  110. Haruna Y, Morita Y, Yada T, Satoh M, Fox DA, Kashihara N. Fluvastatin reverses endothelial dysfunction and increased vascular oxidative stress in rat adjuvant-induced arthritis. Arthritis Rheum. 2007;56:1827–1835
  111. Van Dornum S, McColl G, Wicks IP. Atorvastatin reduces arterial stiffness in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 2004;63:1571–1575
  112. Mäki-Petäjä KM, Booth AD, Hall FC, Wallace SM, Brown J, McEniery CM, et al. Ezetimibe and simvastatin reduce inflammation, disease activity, and aortic stiffness and improve endothelial function in rheumatoid arthritis. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2007;50:852–858

PII: S0953-6205(08)00263-X

doi: 10.1016/j.ejim.2008.09.005

European Journal of Internal Medicine
Volume 20, Issue 4 , Pages 348-354 , July 2009

Article Tools

* Image Usage & Resolution