RESEARCH - C-reactive Protein elevation correlates with accelerated atherogenesis in RA

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J Rheumatol. 2005 Jul;32(7):1219-23.

High-grade C-Reactive Protein Elevation Correlates with Accelerated

Atherogenesis in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis.

-Gay MA, -atey C, Pineiro A, -Porrua C, Testa A,

Llorca J.

OBJECTIVE: Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are at greater risk of

developing cardiovascular events compared with individuals without RA.

Increased risk for cardiovascular disease in these patients is a consequence

of atherosclerosis. Case-control studies have shown that increased

intima-media thickness (IMT) of the common carotid artery is an indicator of

generalized atherosclerosis. Some investigators have suggested that the

development of atherosclerosis in RA may be related to the magnitude and

chronicity of the systemic inflammation. We examined the relationship

between carotid IMT to C-reactive protein (CRP) and erythrocyte

sedimentation rate (ESR), which are the most commonly assessed markers of

inflammatory response in patients with RA. METHODS: Retrospective review of

CRP and ESR values in 47 patients with longterm actively treated (at least 5

years) RA without clinically evident atherosclerosis or its complications,

who had been studied for carotid IMT with high resolution B-mode ultrasound.

RESULTS: No correlation between ESR and carotid IMT was observed. However, a

correlation was found between the maximum CRP values and the carotid IMT (p

= 0.009). The distribution of patients in 4 quartiles according to the

average CRP values showed significant differences in the carotid IMT (p =

0.03). Those exhibiting the highest mean CRP values (quartile 4) had greater

carotid IMT. There was no correlation between CRP at the time of disease

diagnosis or at the time of the ultrasound study and the carotid IMT.

CONCLUSION: Our study confirms that the magnitude and chronicity of the

inflammatory response measured by CRP correlates directly with the presence

of atherosclerosis in patients with RA.

PMID: 15996055

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve & db=PubMed & list_uids=1\

5996055 & dopt=Abstract

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