ABSTRACT
Several lines of evidence show that cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of death in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Total cholesterol (TC) in active RA is reported to be reduced and TC in patients with active RA is reported to be lower than in those with inactive RA. Lipoprotein metabolism has been shown to be markedly altered during the inflammatory process in animal models and in human inflammatory diseases. This chapter aims to reveal influence of inflammation on lipid metabolism in patients with RA. Inflammation seemed to be one of the most important determinants of TC level in RA patients as shown in multiple regression analysis. Thus, the influence of inflammation on TC is stronger than that of sex difference. To exclude the influence of age and sex on lipid metabolism, the correlation between the changes of lipid and inflammatory parameters between 2 different time points (October 2001 and October 2002) were analyzed.
