Article
Rheumatology
George A. Karpouzas, Sarah R. Ormseth, Elizabeth Hernandez, Matthew J. Budoff
Summary: In this study, statin therapy was associated with lower long-term cardiovascular risk in rheumatoid arthritis patients, especially those with higher inflammation levels. Additionally, statin therapy modified the impact of inflammation on new coronary plaque formation and predicted regression and calcification of prevalent noncalcified lesions.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Angelo Zinellu, Arduino A. Mangoni
Summary: This study investigates the relationship between plasma/serum concentrations of uric acid and allantoin and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). It finds that while there were no significant differences in uric acid concentrations between RA patients and healthy controls, the concentrations of allantoin were significantly higher in RA patients. Further research is needed to explore the connection between uric acid, allantoin, redox balance, and cardiovascular disease in this population.
Article
Rheumatology
Ho So, Tsz On Lam, Huan Meng, Steven Ho Man Lam, Lai-Shan Tam
Summary: The use of glucocorticoids (GC) increases the risk of cardiovascular events (CVE) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients, but there is controversy regarding the threshold dose and duration of GC use that will increase the CVE rate. This study found that a daily prednisolone dose ≥5 mg significantly increased the risk of CVE, while a daily dose below 5 mg was not associated with CVE risk.
ANNALS OF THE RHEUMATIC DISEASES
(2023)
Review
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Celian Peyronnel, Perle Totoson, Helene Martin, Celine Demougeot
Summary: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is associated with excessive cardiovascular mortality due to premature atherosclerosis, with endothelial activation (EA) playing a key role. EA involves loss of vascular integrity, expression of leucocyte adhesion molecules, transition to a prothrombotic phenotype, cytokine production, shedding of membrane microparticles, and recruitment of endothelial progenitor cells. Circulating markers of EA may serve as potential biomarkers for vascular pathology and cardiovascular (CV) risk. This review presents the biology of EA, analyzes available data on EA markers in RA in relation to vascular pathology and CV events, discusses their relevance as biomarkers of CV risk, and proposes future directions.
Review
Biology
Elena Rezus, Luana Andreea Macovei, Alexandra Maria Burlui, Anca Cardoneanu, Ciprian Rezus
Summary: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) increases the risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) due to inflammation and disease activity. Treatment of RA should focus not only on disease control, but also on targeting inflammation to prevent CVD.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Seonyoung Kang, Kyungdo Han, Jin-Hyung Jung, Yeonghee Eun, In Young Kim, Jiwon Hwang, Eun-Mi Koh, Seulkee Lee, Hoon-Suk Cha, Hyungjin Kim, Jaejoon Lee
Summary: This large-scale nationwide cohort study investigated the association between cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and factors that may increase CVD risk. The study found that RA patients had a 50% higher risk of myocardial infarction (MI) and a 20% higher risk of stroke. The association between RA and CVD was more prominent in females, and the association between RA and MI risk was significant in individuals without diabetes.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Metka Koren Krajnc, Radovan Hojs, Iztok Holc, Zeljko Knez, Artur Pahor
Summary: The study revealed that asymptomatic atherosclerosis is accelerated in premenopausal women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), with an association between inflammation and accelerated atherosclerosis. VCAM was significantly correlated with plaque formation in RA patients.
BOSNIAN JOURNAL OF BASIC MEDICAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Review
Biology
Diana Popescu, Elena Rezus, Minerva Codruta Badescu, Nicoleta Dima, Petronela Nicoleta Seritean Isac, Ioan-Teodor Dragoi, Ciprian Rezus
Summary: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an independent cardiovascular risk factor and is associated with traditional risk factors such as smoking, arterial hypertension, dyslipidemia, insulin resistance, and obesity. Recent studies have identified markers like serum homocysteine, asymmetric dimethylarginine, or carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) as predictors of cardiovascular risk in RA. Although the introduction of biological therapy has brought new perspectives, early detection of atherosclerosis and targeted therapies are crucial for reducing cardiovascular risk in RA patients.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Benedicte Delcoigne, Sella A. Provan, Eirik K. Kristianslund, Johan Askling, Lotta Ljung
Summary: This study aimed to estimate the short-term risks of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) based on their current disease activity, including remission. The results showed that failure to reach remission is associated with an increased risk of ACS, highlighting the importance of optimizing cardiovascular risk factors in these patients.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF INTERNAL MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Heidi Kokkonen, Linda Johansson, Hans Stenlund, Solbritt Rantapaa-Dahlqvist
Summary: The increased comorbidity and mortality in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients are largely due to cardiovascular disease (CVD). Risk factors for CVD present in pre-RA individuals were associated with future cardiovascular events, and even after adjustments for these risk factors and treatments after RA onset, pre-RA individuals had a higher risk of cardiovascular events compared with controls.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Eleana Bolla, Nikolaos Tentolouris, Petros P. Sfikakis, Maria G. Tektonidou
Summary: This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) in antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) patients and its associations with cardiovascular risk biomarkers, physical activity, and subclinical atherosclerosis. The results showed that MetS was present in approximately one-fourth of APS patients and was associated with arterial thrombosis, cardiovascular risk biomarkers, physical activity, and subclinical atherosclerosis. This suggests that MetS plays an important role in cardiovascular risk stratification and management in APS.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Marta Rojas-Gimenez, Clementina Lopez-Medina, Jerusalem Calvo-Gutierrez, Maria Angeles Puche-Larrubia, Ignacio Gomez-Garcia, Pedro Segui-Azpilcueta, Maria del Carmen Abalos-Aguilera, Desiree Ruiz, Eduardo Collantes-Estevez, Alejandro Escudero-Contreras
Summary: The objective of this study was to assess the association between carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) and the presence of atheromatous plaque with different rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatments. The results showed that patients on tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha) inhibitors had smaller CIMTs, suggesting a potential protective effect against subclinical atherosclerosis. However, these findings should be confirmed in larger prospective studies.
Article
Rheumatology
Anne Grete Semb, Silvia Rollefstad, Eirik Ikdahl, Grunde Wibetoe, Joseph Sexton, Cindy Crowson, Piet van Riel, George Kitas, Ian Graham, Solbritt Rantapaa-Dahlqvist, George Athanasios Karpouzas, Elena Myasoedova, Miguel A. Gonzalez-Gay, Petros P. Sfikakis, Maria G. Tektonidou, Argyro Lazarini, Dimitrios Vassilopoulos, Bindee Kuriya, Carol Hitchon, Maria Simona Stoenoiu, Patrick Durez, Virginia Pascual-Ramos, Dionicio Angel Galarza-Delgado, Pompilio Faggiano, Durga Prasanna Misra, Andrew A. Borg, Rong Mu, Erkin M. Mirrakhimov, Diane Gheta, Karen Douglas, Vikas Agarwal, Svetlana Myasoedova, Lev Krougly, Tatiana Valentinovna Popkova, Alena Tuchynova, Michal Tomcik, Michal Vrablik, Jiri Lastuvka, Pavel Horak, Helena Kaspar Medkova, Anne M. Kerola
Summary: The prevalence of ASCVD was higher in RA-DM compared to RAwoDM, and lipid goals were more frequently obtained in RA-DM. Lessons from CVD prevention programs in diabetes mellitus could benefit patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Jeneen Panezai, Ambereen Ghaffar, Mohammad Altamash, Mikael Aberg, Thomas E. Van Dyke, Anders Larsson, Per-Erik Engstrom
Summary: Periodontal disease enhances the expression of CVD-related biomarkers in RA patients through shared pathological clusters, concurrently enhancing metabolic and skeletal disease protein interactions, independent of autoimmune status.
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Marta Rojas-Gimenez, Clementina Lopez-Medina, Maria Lourdes Ladehesa-Pineda, Maria angeles Puche-Larrubia, Ignacio Gomez-Garcia, Jerusalem Calvo-Gutierrez, Pedro Segui-Azpilcueta, Maria del Carmen Abalos-Aguilera, Desiree Ruiz-Vilchez, Alejandro Escudero-Contreras, Eduardo Collantes-Estevez
Summary: The study compared the inflammation's effect on subclinical atherosclerosis in patients with RA and SpA using carotid ultrasound. Results showed that when diseases were well controlled, subclinical atherosclerosis in both groups was similar, but in moderate-high disease activity, cIMT was greater in RA patients compared to SpA patients.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Rheumatology
Jose Felix Restrepo, Inmaculada del Rincon, Emily Molina, Daniel F. Battafarano, Agustin Escalante
JCR-JOURNAL OF CLINICAL RHEUMATOLOGY
(2017)
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Rector Arya, Agustin Escalante, Vidya S. Farook, Jose F. Restrepo, Daniel F. Battafarano, Marcio Almeida, Mark Z. Kos, Marcel J. Fourcaudot, Srinivas Mummidi, Satish Kumar, Joanne E. Curran, Christopher P. Jenkinson, John Blangero, Ravindranath Duggirala, Inmaculada del Rincon
Editorial Material
Primary Health Care
Seetha U. Monrad, Daniel F. Battafarano
Review
Primary Health Care
Matthew J. Hubbard, Bernard A. Hildebrand, Monica M. Battafarano, Daniel F. Battafarano
Article
Rheumatology
Daniel F. Battafarano, Marcia Ditmyer, Marcy B. Bolster, John D. Fitzgerald, Chad Deal, Ann R. Bass, Rodolfo Molina, Alan R. Erickson, Jonathan S. Hausmann, Marisa Klein-Gitelman, Lisa F. Imundo, Benjamin J. Smith, Karla Jones, Kamilah Greene, Seetha U. Monrad
ARTHRITIS CARE & RESEARCH
(2018)
Article
Rheumatology
Marcy B. Bolster, Anne R. Bass, Jonathan S. Hausmann, Chad Deal, Marcia Ditmyer, Kamilah L. Greene, Seetha U. Monrad, Daniel F. Battafarano
ARTHRITIS & RHEUMATOLOGY
(2018)
Article
Rheumatology
Adam Kilian, Laura A. Upton, Daniel F. Battafarano, Seetha U. Monrad
RHEUMATIC DISEASE CLINICS OF NORTH AMERICA
(2019)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Mary Boulanger, Emily Molina, Kunbo Wang, Thomas Kickler, Yanxun Xu, Brian T. Garibaldi
Summary: Patients with detectable plasma cells in peripheral blood in severe cases of COVID-19 have a reduced risk of mortality. Despite being more likely to have severe disease, the presence of plasma cells is associated with better prognosis.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF MEDICINE
(2021)
Letter
Rheumatology
E. Molina, J. Albayda
SCANDINAVIAN JOURNAL OF RHEUMATOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Rheumatology
Emily Molina, Michelle Petri, Rebecca Manno, Luke Williamson, Lyn Williamson, Homa Timlin
Summary: Patients with SLE face increased cardiovascular risk and often experience fatigue. Regular exercise may help improve quality of life and cardiovascular health in these patients.
Article
Dermatology
Emily Molina, Lisa Christopher-Stine, Jemima Albayda
Summary: The clinical presentation of dermatomyositis can vary, and specific autoantibodies may be associated with different phenotypes. This report describes a case of anti-MDA5 dermatomyositis presenting with perinasal edema and erythema, which is a rare and unusual symptom. Early diagnosis and proper treatment are crucial for managing this condition.
CASE REPORTS IN DERMATOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Rheumatology
Dylan Hardenbergh, Emily Molina, Rakhi Naik, Duvuru Geetha, Shruti Chaturvedi, Homa Timlin
Summary: Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) have a higher risk of certain cancers, but a lower risk of others. Exogenous and innate factors are important in determining the cancer risk for SLE patients.
Review
Rheumatology
Emily Molina, Neda Gould, Kristen Lee, Rebecca Krimins, Dylan Hardenbergh, Homa Timlin
Summary: Although the exact cause of autoimmunity is not fully understood, stress has been considered as a potential trigger for autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Stress can lead to physiological changes that affect the immune system, and mindfulness-based practices have shown to alleviate stress response and improve quality of life. This review discusses the relationship between chronic stress and SLE, the evidence supporting mindfulness-based practices in these patients, and future research directions.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Rector Arya, Agustin Escalante, Vidya S. Farook, Jose F. Restrepo, Daniel F. Battafarano, Marcio Almeida, Mark Z. Kos, Marcel J. Fourcaudot, Srinivas Mummidi, Satish Kumar, Joanne E. Curran, Christopher P. Jenkinson, John Blangero, Ravindranath Duggirala, Inmaculada del Rincon