Reumatizam, Vol. 55 No. 2, 2008.
Conference paper
Cardiovascular disorders in rheumatoid arthritis
Jadranka Morović-Vergles
; Department for Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology, Clinic for Internal Medicine, Clinical Hospital “Dubrava”, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Traditional cardiovascular risk factors (including male sex, family history for cardiovascular disease, age, dyslipidaemia, arterial hypertension, diabetes mellitus, smoking and obesity) do not adequately accunt for the extent of cardiovascular disease in RA. The pathogenesis of accelerated atherosclerosis in RA is not celar. Increasing evidence suggests a key role of inflammation in the onset and progression of atherosclerosis. Endothelial dysfunction represents the earliest manifestation of atherosclerosis. Hypertension prevalence in patients with RA is higher than that in the general population. It is attributable risk to the development of future cardiovascular events. Despite its serious complications, control of hypertension is far from adequate in the general population and even more so in rheumatoid arthritis patients.
Keywords
rheumatoid artrhritis; cardiovascular disorders; inflammation; atherosclerosis; diastolic dysfunction; endothelial dysfunction; hypertension
Hrčak ID:
125245
URI
Publication date:
17.10.2008.
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