Co-Morbidity of Cardiovascular Diseases and Rheumatoid Arthritis

Abstract

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic disease related to swelling of joints which lead to restriction in movement due to pain and deformity mainly in feet, ankle, wrist, and fingers. It is an autoimmune disease, and the manifestations caused due to its occurrence are not clearly understood. In today's time, it has been observed that comorbid conditions account for most of the deaths as they influence the outcome of RA and limit therapeutic options. The most common comorbid conditions which are diagnosed in RA patients are generally cardiovascular (CV) abnormalities, several infections, certain mental disorders, and malignancies. Among which CV comorbid diseases are the most common kind relating to disorders of heart and blood vessel that eventually leads to severe conditions such as angina, myocardial infarction, stroke, rheumatic heart disease, and many more. RA affects the quality of life of patients directly or indirectly, but it mainly shows a significant increase in the prevalence of CV diseases. Hence, it is essential to diagnose and understand about the related manifestations when one is suffering from RA. These studies will aid to make better treatment and management strategies. Hence, an attempt has been made in this review article regarding the epidemiology, impact of both diseases and related risk factors. It also gives information in brief about the pathological causes of the comorbidity and summarizes measures that may be used in the prevention and treatment of these conditions.

A Never-Ending Story of Rheumatoid Arthritis

“…There is more risk of stroke and myocardial infraction about 2-fold increase in the patients of RA which are suffering from about 10 y or more. It has been concluded that the patients of RA show more risk of having heart disease which can lead to increase mortality rates [26].…”