The results of the latest study will allow progress to be made in the design of specific strategies for the management of cardiovascular risk according to sex.
The ‘Immunopathology’ group of the Marqués de Valdecilla Health Research Institute (IDIVAL) coordinates a multicenter study with a dozen Spanish hospitals to investigate cardiovascular risk in patients with axial spondyloarthritis, a disease characterized by inflammation of the sacroiliac joints and the spine with severe pain, stiffness and fatigue.
The results of the latest study describe for the first time the differences associated with sex in the cardiovascular profile, specifically in atherosclerosis, known as “hardening of the arteries”, which can completely obstruct vessels with the formation of plaques inside them.
An in-depth understanding of axial spondyloarthritis and its cardiovascular profile is the first step towards establishing specific strategies for managing cardiovascular risk according to sex, as well as delving into ailments such as chronic inflammatory arthropathies in which there is destruction of a joint as a result of inflammation.
The authors confirmed that disease-specific factors such as inflammatory burden and functional and mobility limitations are associated with atherosclerosis in both men and women.
However, the interaction between inflammation, classical risk factors and atherosclerosis is closer in the case of women.
The results were obtained after analyzing data on the disease itself, classical risk factors and subclinical atherosclerosis obtained by carotid ultrasound in 611 men and 301 women from the AtheSpAin cohort.
The authors aim to further explore this field and studies are already underway to analyze the impact that inflammation may have on various parameters of cardiovascular risk according to the sex of the patients.
