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Clinical aspects

 

Association between homocysteine levels and arterial stiffness in women with systemic sclerosis

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

 

  1. Department of Rheumatology, Hospital Vega-Baja, Alicante, Spain. antonioalvarezdc@gmail.com
  2. Department of Emergency, Hospital Santa Ana, Granada, Spain.
  3. Infectious Diseases Unit, Hospital General de Elche, Alicante, Spain.
  4. Systemic Autoimmune Diseases Unit, Hospital Virgen de las Nieves, Granada, Spain.
  5. Epidemiology, Genetics and Atherosclerosis Research Group on Systemic Inflammatory Diseases, Rheumatology Division, IDIVAL, Santander; School of Medicine, University of Cantabria, Santander, Spain; and Cardiovascular Pathophysiology and Genomics Research Unit, School of Physiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
  6. Systemic Autoimmune Diseases Unit, Hospital Universitario San Cecilio, Granada; School of Medicine, University of Granada; and Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria, IBS, Granada, Spain.

CER13602
2020 Vol.38, N°3 ,Suppl.125
PI 0092, PF 0097
Clinical aspects

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PMID: 32865170 [PubMed]

Received: 22/05/2020
Accepted : 21/07/2020
In Press: 26/08/2020
Published: 26/08/2020

Abstract

OBJECTIVES:
The purpose of this study was to evaluate homocysteine (Hcy) serum levels in women with systemic sclerosis (SSc) compared with healthy controls and to examine possible associations between Hcy and markers of arterial stiffness.
METHODS:
A cross-sectional study was performed at a single hospital between November 2017 and May 2019: 62 women with SSc and 62 age- and sex-matched healthy controls were enrolled. Pulse wave velocity (PWV) was measured non-invasively along the carotid-femoral arterial segment. Serum Hcy was analysed using immunonephelo-metric method.
RESULTS:
There was a significant difference in Hcy serum levels between SSc female patients and healthy controls (11.9±3.3 vs. 10.3±2.3 μmol/ml, p=0.002). Serum levels of Hcy were positively correlated with PWV (r=0.28, p<0.05), brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) (r=0.36, p<0.05) and disease duration (r=0.38, p<0.05), within the SSc group. In addition, in the linear regression model, higher Hcy concentrations were associated with higher PWV [β=0.74 95% CI (0.085, 1.394); p=0.027], BNP [β=0.04 95% CI (0.014, 0.072); p=0.004] and disease duration [β=0.18 95% CI (0.070, 0.300); p=0.002]. In multiple linear regression model adjusting for covariants, Hcy remained positively related to the PWV [β=0.033 95% CI (0.003, 0.062); p=0.031].
CONCLUSIONS:
Our findings revealed a positive correlation between Hcy serum levels and PWV, which indicates that high levels of Hcy may predispose to the development of vascular stiffness in patients with SSc.

Rheumatology Article