Inflammation rather than anticitrullinated protein antibodies is associated with cardiovascular mortality in RA: insights from rheumatoid arthritis and coronary artery disease cohorts

Derksen VFAM, Lindschou J, Winkel P, Delgado GE, de Moel EC, Huizinga TWJ, März W, Jakobsen JC et al.

ACPA prevalence and its association with mortality were examined in two CAD cohorts, including LURIC (n = 2,189 patients; 656 controls), and two rheumatoid arthritis (RA) cohorts. In both CAD cohorts, ACPA prevalence was low (0.9% and 4.6%), with no association with all-cause mortality. In RA, the ACPA-mortality association was fully explained by C-reactive protein (indirect hazard ratio 1.24-1.33), implicating chronic inflammation as the primary driver of cardiovascular mortality.

Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, 25. Dezember 2025 | PMID 41453823