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Patients with RA Who Respond to Treatment Experience Increased Cholesterol

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Thus, Dr. Charles-Schoeman counsels rheumatologists not to be surprised if cholesterol levels increase when patients with RA respond to treatment. Additionally, although cholesterol levels are considered surrogate markers for cardiovascular risk in the general population, their prognostic value in patients with RA is less clear. Consequently, rather than focusing solely on cholesterol numbers, physicians should, instead, monitor other cardiovascular risk factors, such as blood pressure. The authors also called for future studies to evaluate the mechanism behind the effects of hydroxychloroquine and triple therapy on cholesterol and lipoprotein metabolism in patients with RA.

Lara C. Pullen, PhD, is a medical writer based in the Chicago area.

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Reference

  1. Charles-Schoeman C, Wang X, Lee YY, et al. Association of triple therapy with improvement in cholesterol profiles over two-year followup in the treatment of early aggressive rheumatoid arthritis trial. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2016 Mar;68(3):577–586. doi: 10.1002/art.39502.

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