Correlation of asymptomatic hyperuricaemia and serum uric acid levels with arterial stiffness in women with systemic lupus erythematosus without clinically evident atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease

Abstract

The objective of this article was to evaluate whether serum uric acid (SUA) correlates with arterial stiffness and inflammation markers in a cohort of women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) without overt atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases, who attended a community hospital. One hundred and two women with SLE were assessed as part of this cross-sectional study. Carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV) was measured using an automatic device (Complior). C-reactive protein (CRP), fibrinogen and homocysteine levels as well as other metabolic results were recorded. Duration and activity of SLE, damage accrual and treatments were recorded. SLE women were categorized as having or not having hyperuricaemia (HU) according to SUA levels (greater than or up to 6.2 mg/dl, respectively). A multiple linear regression analysis was used to determine the independent link between SUA levels and other variables. Women with SLE and HU (n = 15, 15%) had a worse cardiovascular risk profile that included ageing, hypertension, obesity, higher total cholesterol levels, renal failure and presence of metabolic syndrome. Also, the duration of SLE was increased and damage accrual was greater. In the unadjusted analysis, SUA levels correlated with PWV, CRP, fibrinogen and homocysteine. However, in a multivariate linear regression analysis, SUA levels independently correlated with the duration of SLE, creatinine, total cholesterol and homocysteine levels but did not correlate with PWV. In conclusion, SUA was associated with arterial stiffness, but not independently of age and homocysteine levels. Nevertheless, SUA might be an ancillary indicator of subclinical atherosclerosis in SLE women without clinically evident atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.