Cardiovascular Risk Factors: Comparison Between Rheumatoid Arthritis and General Population

Abstract

Introduction: We aimed to analyze the relation between the rheumatoid
arthritis disease diagnosis and the presence of cardiovascular risk
factors, their prevalence along the disease’s progression and to determine
which ones are the most prevalent in this population.
Material and Methods: We performed an analytical observational
case-control study, where controls were matched by the patient’s
gender and age. The cardiovascular risk factors were defined by validated
criteria. Independent samples t-student and Mann-Whitney
tests were used to compare rheumatoid arthritis patients and controls.
Related samples t-student and Wilcoxon tests were carried out
to compare patients in different disease stages. Furthermore, logistic
regression was also performed to determine the main predictors of
patients’ cardiovascular risk.
Results: From 109 patients and 218 healthy subjects (70.6% female;
average age: 53 years), HDL, LDL, triglycerides and Framingham
scale at patients’ diagnosis were significantly different from controls
(p < 0.01). Currently, diastolic blood pressure and glomerular filtration
rate from patients were different from controls (p < 0.05). Patients had
higher diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol and LDL at diagnosis
than recently (p < 0.05) and lower HDL (p < 0.001). Finally, age, systolic
blood pressure, LDL and triglycerides were associated with a higher
cardiovascular risk (p < 0.05) while female gender, diastolic blood pressure
and total cholesterol were associated with lower cardiovascular
risk (p < 0.05).
Conclusion: Rheumatoid arthritis patients have a high-risk lipid profile
and high blood pressure at diagnosis, which provides an elevated cardiovascular
risk.