Psoriatic arthritis (PsA), like other inflammatory diseases, has been associated with increased incidence for and mortality from cardiovascular disease (CVD), the most common comorbidity leading to death in many conditions treated by rheumatologists. But beyond recognizing the burden of increased inflammation, the mechanisms behind this association are not well understood, says M. Elaine Husni, MD,…
The early identification of endothelial dysfunction may be useful in clinical practice to prevent SLE patients from developing atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. New research evaluated the use of peripheral arterial tonometry in assessing endothelial dysfunction in patients with early SLE and no cardiovascular risk factors or disease. The results: These patients showed a high rate of endothelial dysfunction and vascular stiffness…
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are the most used drugs for acute and chronic pain. More than 30 billion doses of NSAIDs are consumed annually from more than 70 million prescriptions.1 Despite their common use, NSAIDs are not free of serious toxicities. In the pre-Vioxx (rofecoxib) era, gastrointestinal toxicity was the primary concern for many NSAIDs….
Experts in rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular health and education have joined forces to create a video intervention designed to help patients understand their risks for heart attack and stroke, as well as how to reduce these risks. Early research into this educational intervention shows the video is effective…
New research has linked alendronate to reduced cardiovascular death in hip fracture patients…
New research raises questions about the cardiovascular safety of febuxostat for gout patients compared with allopurinol. The study found that although febuxostat was noninferior to allopurinol, febuxostat-treated patients had similar overall rates of major adverse cardiovascular events as allopurinol-treated patients, but had higher rates of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality…
A recent epidemiologic study of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) investigated racial and ethnic differences in the risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Among SLE patients enrolled in Medicaid, the risk for myocardial infarction (MI) was lower in Hispanics and Asians compared with whites, and the risk of stroke was higher in blacks and Hispanics…
CHICAGO—Sherine E. Gabriel, MD, MSc, professor of medicine at Rutgers Medical School in Newark, N.J., and a past president of the ACR, presented an overview of cardiovascular disease and rheumatology on a Saturday morning to a room overflowing with rheumatologists attending the ACR’s State-of-the-Art Clinical Symposium in April. She noted that physicians have known for a…
New research has examined the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), as well as myocardial infarction and ischemic stroke, for patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in a large-scale population-based study. Researchers found that patients with SLE have a greater than two-fold increased risk of developing CVD. This risk is greatest during the first year after diagnosis and remains elevated for at least five years…
For patients with rheumatic disease, general treatment guidelines for managing cardiovascular risk are suboptimal, says Katherine Liao, MD. A patient’s level of disease activity and inflammation affect their risk…