The carotid artery atherosclerosis burden and its relation to cardiovascular risk factors in black and white Africans with established rheumatoid arthritis: a cross-sectional study.

Objective: Black Africans currently experience a distinctly low frequency of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Whether this protection persists in those with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is unknown. We compared the carotid atherosclerosis burden and its relationships with cardiovascular (CV) risk factors between Africans with RA from a developing black and developed CV population.

Traditional and nontraditional cardiovascular risk factors are associated with atherosclerosis in rheumatoid arthritis.

Objective: To determine the association between cardiovascular (CV) risk factors and atherosclerosis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Methods: The common carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT) and plaque were evaluated by high resolution B-mode ultrasound in 74 consecutive patients with RA. Patients with an IMT > or = 0.

High-dose atorvastatin therapy is required for significant improvement of endothelial function in heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemic patients.

This study evaluated endothelial dysfunction (ED) by measuring flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD) and for six months documented changes in ED, LDL-C levels and serum concentrations of inflammatory markers with high- and low-dose atorvastatin therapy. In 23 heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemic (FH) patients, FMD, LDL-C and inflammatory markers (sVCAM-1, sICAM-1, E-selectin and highly sensitive C-reactive protein) were measured at baseline (untreated) and on atorvastatin 20 and 80 mg/day. In untreated patients, FMD was significantly reduced (mean +/- SD = 3.