AB0161 THE IMPACT OF BIOLOGICAL AGENTS ON CARDIOVASCULAR RISK FACTORS OF PATIENTS DIAGNOSED WITH RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS
Authors: G. Papamichail, T. Markatseli, A. Georgiadis, V. Xydis, C. Milionis, A. Drosos, P. Voulgari
Journal: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases (2021)

Background: The risk of cardiovascular disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is 1.5-2 fold higher than in people of the same age and sex of the general population. 1,2,3 This marked risk is attributed to the systemic chronic inflammation which is characteristic of the disease. Objectives: The aim of this study is to evaluate cardiovascular risk factors and early atherosclerosis in rheumatoid arthritis patients, treated with biological agents. Methods: This is a prospective, observational study. Thirty-five patients treated with synthetic DMARDs with no previous history of a cardiovascular event included. We compared total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c), triglycerides (TGs), Apolipoprotein A1 (ApoA1), Apolipoprotein B (ApoB) and Lipoprotein A (LpA), the titer of autoantibodies against oxidised LDL(anti-oxLDL), systolic blood pressure, inflammatory markes as C-reactive protein (CRP) and erythrocytes sedimentation rate (ESR) between baseline and after 6 months of biological agents initiation. An ultrasonographic measurement of intima-media thickness (IMT) of carotids was also performed by an experienced sonographer at baseline and after one-year follow-up. Results: As regards the demographic characteristics of patients, the mean (SD) age was 54(14) years, disease duration 4,3(1.4) years, 22.9% were smokers and 68,6% were women. Anti-TNF was administered in 71,4% of patients while the rest non anti-TNF was given as treatment. Six months after treatment initiation, patients presented with a significant increase in mean (SD) HDL[69(19)vs58(15)] and ApoA1[177(34)vs162(31)] levels (p value &lt;0,001) with a simultaneous significant reduction of mean (SD) systolic blood pressure [128(12)vs136(14)] and the titer of anti-oxLDL[0,132(0,042)vs0,190(0,056)]. ΙΜΤ was also reduced after one-year reassessment [0,8(0,3) mm vs 0,9(0,3)mm, (p value &lt;0,001 for all comparisons)]. Conclusion: Biological agents administration was accompanied by an improved lipid profile in a six-month period and a significant reduction of IMT, confirming that RA patients are prone to early atherosclerosis and probably biological agents initiation correlates strongly with cardiovascular risk reduction. References: [1]Avina-Zubieta JA, Choi HK, Sadatsafavi M, Etminan M, Esdaile JM, Lacaille D. Risk of cardiovascular mortality in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a meta-analysis of observational studies. Arthritis and rheumatism. 2008 Dec 15;59(12):1690–1697. [2]Avina-Zubieta JA, Thomas J, Sadatsafavi M, Lehman AJ, Lacaille D. Risk of incident cardiovascular events in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a meta-analysis of observational studies. Annals of the rheumatic diseases. 2012 Sep;71(9):1524–1529. [3]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 Mar 11;107(9):1303–1307. Disclosure of Interests: None declared