Factors associated with atherosclerosis in radiographic and non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis. A multicenter study on 838 patients.

Abstract

OBJECTIVES:

To identify disease-related factors associated with subclinical atherosclerosis and cardiovascular (CV) events in a large series of patients with axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) and to identify possible differences in the effect of the potential pro-atherogenic factors between ankylosing spondylitis (AS) non-radiographic axSpA (nr-axSpA).

METHODS:

This is a cross-sectional observational study of the AtheSpAin cohort, a Spanish multicenter cohort to study atherosclerosis in axSpA. Subclinical atherosclerosis determined by carotid ultrasound included assessment of carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) and plaque detection.

RESULTS:

639 AS and 167 nr-axSpA patients were recruited. CV risk factors (CRF) and several disease-related factors showed a statistically significant association with subclinical atherosclerosis in the crude analysis. After adjustment for age, sex, and smoking (model 1), associations remained statistically significant for spinal mobility, inflammatory bowel disease, use of prednisone, and Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD) when assessing carotid plaques and for acute phase reactants (APR) at diagnosis, use of prednisone, DMARD, and TNF-inhibitors when measuring cIMT. In model 2, which also included classic CRF as confounding factors to identify axSpA features with a potential independent pro-atherogenic effect, the functional status was the only variable significantly associated with plaques and the use of prednisone and APR at diagnosis with cIMT. No association differences were found between both subtypes of patients. Besides, APR at diagnosis were also associated with subsequent development of CV events that had occurred in 33 patients.

CONCLUSION:

Apart from CRF, atherosclerotic disease in AxSpA is associated with disease-related factors such as inflammatory response and disease severity, with no differences between AS and nr-axSpA.

• Authors: Javier Rueda-Gotor, Iván Ferraz-Amaro, Fernanda Genre, Iñigo González-Mazón, Alfonso Corrales, Vanesa Calvo-Rio, Virginia Portilla, Javier Llorca, Rosa Expósito, Vanesa Hernández-Hernández, Juan Carlos Quevedo-Abeledo, Carlos Rodríguez-Lozano, Clementina Lopez-Medina, María Lourdes Ladehesa-Pineda, Santos Castañeda, Esther F Vicente, Cristina Fernández-Carballido, M Paz Martínez-Vidal, David Castro-Corredor, Joaquín Anino-Fernández, Diana Peiteado, Chamaida Plasencia-Rodríguez, María Luz García-Vivar, Eva Galíndez-Agirregoikoa, Esther Montes-Perez, Carlos Fernández-Díaz, Ricardo Blanco, Miguel Ángel González-Gay
• Journal: Seminars in arthritis and rheumatism (Semin Arthritis Rheum) Vol. 55 Pg. 152037 (08 2022) ISSN: 1532-866X [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 35689912 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Multicenter Study, Observational Study)
• Copyright: Copyright © 2022. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Chemical References

• Antirheumatic Agents
• Prednisone

Topics

• Antirheumatic Agents (therapeutic use)
• Atherosclerosis (complications, diagnostic imaging)
• Axial Spondyloarthritis
• Carotid Intima-Media Thickness
• Cross-Sectional Studies
• Humans
• Non-Radiographic Axial Spondyloarthritis
• Prednisone (therapeutic use)
• Spondylarthritis (complications, diagnostic imaging)
• Spondylitis, Ankylosing (complications, diagnostic imaging)