title: Echocardiographic evaluation of asymptomatic patients affected by rheumatoid arthritis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is associated with increased mortality and morbidity because of accelerated atherosclerosis. The study assessed the prevalence of left and right ventricle diastolic and systolic dysfunction in outpatients with RA.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study included 93 outpatients with RA. In all patients and control group, echocardiographic conventional and tissue Doppler (TDI) studies were conducted.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the group of RA patients, we found high prevalence of left ventricular systolic and diastolic dysfunction and right diastolic dysfunction compared with controls (13.5% vs 5.5 %, 76.3% vs 48.8% and 41.9% vs 6.6%, respectively; P < 0.001). Rheumatoid arthritis patients and controls showed significant differences about mitral, tricuspid, and pulmonary flow velocity curves; tissue Doppler curves of the lateral and the septal myocardial walls of the left ventricle; and basal myocardial free wall of the right ventricle. There were not any correlations between inflammatory and functional disease parameters and variables of systolic and diastolic function.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study shows a high prevalence of left ventricular systolic and diastolic dysfunction in a population of outpatients affected by rheumatoid arthritis.
authors.affiliation: Section of Cardiovascular Disease, Department of Applied Experimental Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy. enrico.vizzardi@tin.it
authors.forename: Enrico
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Vizzardi
authors.forename: Ilaria
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Cavazzana
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bazzani
authors.forename: Natalia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Pezzali
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ceribelli
authors.forename: Ivano
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Bonadei
authors.forename: Franco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Franceschini
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: D'Aloia
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Metra
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tincani
authors.forename: Livio Dei
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Cas
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000453:epidemiology; D058070:Asymptomatic Diseases; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000453:epidemiology