Subclinical Atherosclerosis More Common in HS Patients
Individuals with hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) have a higher prevalence of subclinical atherosclerosis than expected after correcting for traditional risk factors, according to a new study.
Previous research has shown that patients with HS have an increased prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors, but the specific risk for subclinical atherosclerosis in these individuals has not been determined.
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To investigate further, researchers conducted a prospective observational and analytical study involving 62 HS patients and 62 matched controls. Carotid ultrasound was utilized to assess for the presence of atherosclerosis.
Overall, diabetes mellitus (22.6% vs 6.5%), hypertension (41.9% vs 12.9%), and metabolic syndrome (38.7% vs 8.1%) were more common in HS patients than in controls. Subclinical atherosclerosis was present in 30.6% of HS patients, compared with 16.1% of controls.
After conducting a logistic regression analysis, the researchers found that elevated age was associated with the presence of subclinical atherosclerosis, with HS showing a tendency toward this association. The association was statistically significant in patients 40 years and older.
“Our clinical results indicate that patients with HS have a higher prevalence of subclinical atherosclerosis than expected when correcting for traditional risk factors. The findings support the conclusions of previous epidemiological studies.”
—Michael Potts
Reference:
Pascual JC, Gonzalez I, Corona D, et al. Assessment of subclinical atherosclerosis in hidradenitis suppurativa [published online December 2, 2016]. JEADV. doi:10.1111/jdv.14076