title: High ten-year risk of cardiovascular disease in newly diagnosed rheumatoid arthritis patients: a population-based cohort study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To estimate the 10-year absolute risk of cardiovascular (CV) events in newly diagnosed rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and the potential contribution of CV risk factors to absolute risk assessment.
  
  
  METHODS
  A population-based incidence cohort of RA patients (defined according to the American College of Rheumatology 1987 criteria) was assembled and compared with an age- and sex-matched non-RA cohort. Data were collected on CV risk factors and CV events. Cox regression models were used to estimate the 10-year risk of a combined CV end point, adjusting for CV risk factors. Subjects were classified into 5 risk categories based on their 10-year absolute risk.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The absolute CV risk in RA patients was similar to that in non-RA subjects who were 5-10 years older. The absolute risk varied substantially according to the presence of CV risk factors. The 10-year absolute CV risk among 60-69-year-old RA patients with no risk factors was 16.8%, but rose to 60.4% if risk factors such as smoking, hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes, and obesity were present. Among RA patients with a low body mass index, in addition to the above risk factors, the 10-year absolute CV risk rose to 86.2%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  More than half of the newly diagnosed RA patients who were 50-59 years of age and all of those >60 years of age had a >10% risk of CV disease within 10 years of their RA incidence and should be targeted for specific CV risk reduction strategies tailored to their personal risk profiles.
authors.affiliation: Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA.
authors.forename: Hilal Maradit
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Kremers
authors.forename: Cynthia S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Crowson
authors.forename: Terry M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Therneau
authors.forename: Veronique L
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: Roger
authors.forename: Sherine E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Gabriel
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008910:Minnesota / Q000453:epidemiology; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors