REVIEW - The heart and cardiovascular manifestations in RA

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Rheumatology 2006 45(Supplement 4):iv4-iv7; doi:10.1093/rheumatology/kel313

The heart and cardiovascular manifestations in rheumatoid arthritis

A. E. Voskuyl

Department of Rheumatology, 4-A-42, VU University Medical Center, POB

9057, 1007 MB, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Cardiovascular features in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are common. Among

those are the classical extra-articular features that not only include

pericarditis, cardiomyopathy/myocarditis, cardiac amyloidosis,

coronary vasculitis, arrythmia and valve diseases, but also congestive

heart failure and ischaemic heart disease which are found more

frequently and are associated with an increased mortality compared

with the general population. This overview discusses the

epidemiological aspects of these cardiovascular diseases and their

relevance for diagnosis and treatment of RA.

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Read the entire article here:

http://rheumatology.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/45/suppl_4/iv4

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