NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Aug 04 - Rheumatoid arthritis therapy with the tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha blocker infliximab leads to a reduction in measures of vascular stiffness, UK and Australian researchers report in the August issue of the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.
Dr. Bruce Kirkham of Guy's Hospital, London, and colleagues note that there is some evidence that TNF-alpha blockade, as well as reducing rheumatoid activity, may also reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events and mortality.
To examine whether a reduction in vascular stiffness, as measured by pulse wave velocity, might underlie such beneficial effects, the researchers studied 26 patients receiving regular infliximab treatment.
After follow-up for as long as 56 weeks, the team found a significant reduction in pulse wave velocity. However, there was no change in carotid intima media thickness or in carotid artery plaque.
The investigators conclude that "arterial stiffness improves with long-term infliximab treatment in rheumatoid arthritis and that this seems to occur independently of conventional cardiovascular risk factors."
"Vascular abnormalities are somehow linked to chronic active rheumatoid arthritis," they add, "but the mechanisms of this link are unclear."
Ann Rheum Dis 2009;68:1277-1284.