title: Increased cardiovascular risk factors in different rheumatic diseases compared with the general population.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors among patients attending a rheumatology outpatient clinic in comparison with the general population.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional comparison between a rheumatic outpatient cohort of consecutive patients (n = 1233) between 36 and 75 years of age attending the Arthritis Center Twente (ACT) in the year 2009: RA (n = 546), gout (n = 129), OA (n = 168), CTD (n = 85), PMR (n = 91) and chronic localized or generalized pain syndromes (CPSs; n = 214) and a random sample from a long-lasting population-based health study in the Netherlands (n = 4523). The main outcome measures were hypertension (systolic blood pressure ≥ 140 mmHg and/or a diastolic blood pressure ≥ 90 mmHg and/or the use of antihypertensive medication), abnormal cholesterol profile (total cholesterol ≥ 6.5 mmol/l, and/or high-density lipoprotein < 0.9 mmol/l and/or use of lipid lowering medication), overweight (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m(2)), obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m(2)) and cigarette smoking habits (self-reported current smoking).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Compared with the general population, patients with rheumatic diseases have a significantly higher prevalence of hypertension (P(ACT) = 68%, P(general) = 57%), being overweight (P(ACT) = 72%, P(general) = 62%), obesity (P(ACT) = 30%, P(general) = 17%) and cigarette smoking (P(ACT) = 26%, P(general) = 21%). The worst risk profile was found in gout patients, with higher prevalence of all cardiovascular risk factors studied.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Lifestyle-associated potentially modifiable cardiovascular risk factors are over-represented along the whole spectrum of chronic rheumatic diseases, and not only in RA, as suggested by preceding studies.
authors: Arthritis Center Twente, Twente University and Medisch Spectrum Twente, 7500KA Enschede, The Netherlands. i.meek@mst.nl
authors: Inger L
authors: IL
authors: Meek
authors: H Susan J
authors: HS
authors: Picavet
authors: Harald E
authors: HE
authors: Vonkeman
authors: W M Monique
authors: WM
authors: Verschuren
authors: Mart A F J
authors: MA
authors: van de Laar
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D050177:Overweight / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012216:Rheumatic Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking