[Predictors of cardiovascular and cerebral complications in patients with rheumatoid arthritis].

This 5-year long prospective cohort study of 124 young and middle-aged patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) initially without signs of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) aimed at estimating the risk and predictors of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular complications. The patients remained under observation till the following end-points were reached: coronary heart disease, chronic heart failure, disturbed cerebral circulation, cardiovascular death. The following predictors of unfavourable outcome were analysed: CVD risk factors, RA inflammatory activity, and markers of preclinical CVD.

[Asymptomatic carotid atherosclerosis and its predictors in patients with rheumatoid arthritis].

The aim of this work was to study prevalence, severity, and possible pathogenetic mechanisms of asymptotic atherosclerotic lesions in carotid arteries of young and middle-aged patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). A total of 100 cases without clinical manifestations of atherosclerosis (AS) were examined. Risk factors (RF) of cardiovascular complications were analysed and stratified.