Rheumatoid Arthritis Is Linked to Cardiovascular Disease

There’s long been an impression among rheumatologists that their patients may be at increased risk of cardiovascular diseases. Now Canadian researchers from Vancouver have conducted a meta-analysis to see if this suspicion is true, and if so, how great is the risk. They’ve published their findings in the journal Arthritis and Rheumatism.

A search of the published medical literature discovered 24 studies with 111,700 patients who suffered 23,000 cardiovascular events (heart attack, acute angina, and stroke). Overall, there was a 50% increased risk of cardiovascular deaths in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. These patients were 59% more likely to die from a heart attack and 52% more likely to die from a stroke than the general population.

Although there has been quite considerable improvement in mortality from cardiovascular diseases over the years, this improvement has not been seen in rheumatoid patients. However, the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis has changed in recent years, adding so-called biopharmaceutical drugs. Maybe these meds will be successful in handling the increased cardiovascular risk, too. In the meantime, people with rheumatoid should keep in touch with their internist, to ensure that all necessary steps are being taken to keep them in good cardiovascular health.