Rheumatoid arthritis: Cardiovascular manifestations, pathogenesis, and therapy

William M. Mellana, Wilbert S. Aronow, Chandrasekar Palaniswamy, Sahil Khera

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

33 Scopus citations

Abstract

Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is a chronic progressive inflammatory joint disorder that affects 0.5% - 1% of the general population. This review article discusses cardiovascular manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis, pathogenesis of these manifestations, and therapy. This disease not only affects the joints, but it also involves other organ systems. The majority of these patients suffer significant morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular disease. Cardiovascular manifestations of RA include predilection for accelerated atherosclerosis and endothelial dysfunction resulting in coronary artery disease (CAD), stroke, congestive heart failure, and peripheral arterial disease. Some studies have shown that the risk of developing CAD in RA patients is the same as for patients with diabetes mellitus. These patients should be treated with aggressive medical therapy such as disease modifying antirheumatic drugs, tumor necrosis factor alpha inhibitors, and corticosteroids and with appropriate control of risk factors such as smoking, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and obesity. Other manifestations include pericarditis, myocarditis, and vasculitis.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1450-1456
Number of pages7
JournalCurrent Pharmaceutical Design
Volume18
Issue number11
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 2012
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Cardiovascular disease
  • Coronary artery disease
  • Rheumatoid arthritis

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Rheumatoid arthritis: Cardiovascular manifestations, pathogenesis, and therapy'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this