TITLE:
Increased Risk of Arterial Stiffness in Rhumatoid Arthritis Patients in a Sub-Saharan African Setting
AUTHORS:
Asongwed Achu Reid, Joshua Njimbuc Walinjom, Collins Chenwi, Eho Emerentia, Achu Achiri Roosevelt, Daniel Tchamdeu, Jan Rene Nkeck, Marie Solange Doualla, Daniel Lemogoum
KEYWORDS:
Rheumatoid Arthritis, Arterial Stiffness, CfPWV, Augmentation Index
JOURNAL NAME:
World Journal of Cardiovascular Diseases,
Vol.13 No.6,
June
30,
2023
ABSTRACT: Background: Analysis of arterial stiffness (AS) is a good marker of early arterial disease and an important determinant of cardiovascular risk, independent of other traditional cardiovascular risk factors. Carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (CfPWV) is the gold standard to evaluate arterial stiffness. There is evidence that patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have a higher arterial stiffness than their age-matched healthy counterparts and thus have higher cardiovascular (CV) risk. However, data on arterial stiffness in African rheumatoid arthritis patients is scarce. Objectives: To determine the patterns of arterial stiffness in rheumatoid arthritis patients in a sub-Saharan African setting, using CfPWV and Augmentation index (AIx). Method: We conducted a case-control study, at the Douala general hospital over four months (February to May 2018) on 63 subjects among which 31 RA patients matched for age and sex with 32 healthy subjects. AIx and CfPWV were determined non-invasively by radial pulse wave analysis and carotid femoral wave analysis respectively, using a sphygmocor Atcor device (SphygmoCor, PWV Medical, Sydney, Australia). Results: The mean age of RA patients was 47 ± 14 years with most of them being females (n = 26, 83.9%). CfPWV was significantly higher in RA patients compared to the control group (mean: 8.85 ± 2.1 vs 7.45 ± 1.38; p ≤ 0.01) as well as was AIx (Median: 33 [26 - 43] vs 26 [20 - 31]; p = 0.01). RA (OR: 6.105; 95% CI: 1.52 - 24.54; p 1.34; 95% CI: 1.14 - 5.17; p= 0.05), elevated CRP levels (OR: 4.01; 95% CI: 1.16 - 13.68; p= 0.03) and Hypertension (OR: 5.75; 95% CI: 1.24 -11.60; pConclusion: Arterial stiffness, a well-recognized marker of cardiovascular risk is increased among patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis when compared to a healthy control group.