Heart Inflammation Linked With RA Disease Activity

January 15, 2019

The investigators used FDG PET-CT to detect myocardial inflammation in RA patients without clinical heart failure.

Amigues and fellow researchers from several international institutions have discovered that subclinical myocardial inflammation is common in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and is associated with more severe disease activity.¹ Scroll through the slides for the details of the study and the take-home points for clinicians.

IL, interleukin; RA, rheumatoid arthritis; TNF, tumor necrosis factor.

ELISA, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; FDG PET-CT, 18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography-computed tomography; IL, interleukin; RA, rheumatoid arthritis; TNF, tumor necrosis factor.

anti-CCP, anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody; BMI, body mass index; CAC, coronary artery calcium; DAS28, Disease Activity Score 28; FDG, 18-fluorodeoxyglucose; RA, rheumatoid arthritis; RF, rheumatoid factor; TNF, tumor necrosis factor.

CRP, C-reactive protein; FDG, 18-fluorodeoxyglucose; IL, interleukin; LV, left ventricular; RA, rheumatoid arthritis; TNF, tumor necrosis factor.

CRP, C-reactive protein; DMARD, disease-modifying antirheumatic drug; IL, interleukin; RA, rheumatoid arthritis; TNF, tumor necrosis factor.

RA, rheumatoid arthritis.

Reference

1. Amigues I, Tugcu A, Russo C, et al. Myocardial inflammation, measured using 18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography-computed tomography (FDG PET-CT) is associated with disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2018 Nov 8. doi: 10.1002/art.40771. [Epub ahead of print]

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Heart Inflammation Linked With RA Disease Activity

Gregory M. Weiss, MD