Abstract

BackgroundAn increased incidence of coronary artery disease (CAD) is known in inflammatory arthritis patients compared to the normal population. In the Veterans With Premature Atherosclerosis (VITAL) registry, the frequency of premature CAD (CAD < 55 in men, < 65 years in women) in autoimmune rheumatic diseases was 1.72 (95% CI 1.63-1.81) in Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) compared to the healthy population in approximately 135,000 patients, while a similar situation was not observed in Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) patients 1.09 (95%CI 0.98-1.21) (1).ObjectivesIn this study, we aimed to compare the frequency of CAD and premature CAD in RA and PsA patients using bDMARDs.MethodsThe Hacettepe University biological database (HUR-BIO), database was established in 2005 and prospective follow-up of patients using bDMARDs is being carried out. The frequency of CAD was recorded in 486 PsA and 524 RA patients using bDMARDs. CAD was determined according to the angiography reports or Coronary Computed-Tomography results. Premature CAD is defined as a history of CAD before the age of 55 in men and before the age of 65 in women. Demographic characteristics and other comorbid conditions of the patients were also noted. Disease activity (DAS-28) and functional status (HAQ-DI) of the patients before the first DMARD initiation were recorded.Results581 (75.4% female) RA and 520 (69.4% female) PsA patients were evaluated. The ages of the patients and the duration of the disease are as follows; RA, mean (SD) years of age 52.1 (13.9), disease duration 5.3 (2.1) years, PsA mean (SD) years of age 48.7 (12.5), disease duration 9.2 (6.4). At the time of first bDMARD initiation, 43/581 (7.4%) patients with RA and 12/486 (2.4%) patients with PsA had CAD (p<<0.001). After a median (IQR) follow-up of 32 (23) months in RA patients and 49 (88.5) months in PsA patients, CAD was detected in 59 (11.2%) patients, 32 (6.6%) in PsA patients, p=0.01. While 39/59 (66.1%) of RA patients had premature CAD, 18/32 (56.3%) PsA patients had premature CAD (Table 1).Table 1.Characteristics of RA and PsA patients with/without premature CADRAPsAPremature CADn=38Non-prematureCADn=21pPremature CADn=18Non-prematureCAD(n=14)pGender, n (%)29 (76.3)9 (42.8)0.0110 (55.5)10 (71.4)0.36Age, mean (SD), years56.6 (8.9)72.7 (7.1)<0.00159.9 (8.2)69.1 (6.3)0.002PsA duration, mean (SD), years5.5 (2.1)6.0 (1.7)0.3413.3 (8.9)12.6 (9.5)0.83Smoking (ever), n(%)22 (57.9)11 (52.4)0.8016 (88.9)5 (35.7)0.002BMI > 30, n(%)19 (52.3)7 (35.0)0.208 (44.4)11 (78.5)0.051HT (ever), n(%)23 (63.9)14 (66.7)0.8911 (61.1)13 (92.8)0.040DM (ever), n(%)20 (57.1)9 (52.9)0.774 (22.2)6 (42.8)0.45LDL > 130 (ever), n(%)29120.1311 (61.1)5 (35.7)0.14DAS-284.7 (1.1)4.2 (1.2)0.114.7 (1.4)4.5 (1.5)0.72HAQ (0-3)1.41 (0.7)1.05 (0.8)0.0790.7 (0.6)1. 3 (0.7)0.13RA: Rheumatoid arthritis, PsA: Psoriatic arthritis, CAD; Coronary artery disease, BMI; Body-mass index, HT: Hypertension, DM: Diabetes mellitusConclusionWhile the frequency of premature CAD is 10% in the normal population, CAD has a premature character in two-thirds of RA patients and 55% of PsA patients (2). In a large community-based study, the frequency of premature CAD was found to be increased in RA patients compared to the normal population, but no similar difference was observed in PsA patients (1). In real-life data in which we examined a large group of patients using bDMARDs, it is seen that the subtype of CAD is of pre-mature character in both RA patients and PsA patients.

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