EFFECTS OF ATORVASTATIN IN PATIENTS WITH RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS AND DYSLIPIDEMIA

<p><strong>Objective:</strong> to evaluate the basic and pleiotropic effects of atorvastatin in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and dyslipidemia (DLP).</p><p><br /><strong>Subjects and methods</strong>. The blood lipid profile was studied in 204 patients with RA. According to the found lipid disturbances, the patients<br />were randomized into 2 groups. A study group comprised 30 patients receiving generic atorvastatin 10 mg/day as part of combination therapy.<br />A comparison group included 20 RA patients matched for clinical characteristics and baseline lipid levels, who took no statins. Blood lipid<br />parameters and the markers of inflammation, vascular wall damage, and artery rigidity were examined over time.</p><p><br /><strong>Results.</strong> DLP was found in 58.3 % of the patients with RA. The use of atorvastatin in combination therapy resulted in not only a decrease in atherogenic cholesterol fractions, but also in a considerable reduction in the level of the markers of systemic inflammation and endothelial damage, and in disease activity. Six-month atorvastatin therapy showed a positive impact on the elastic properties of vessels in RA patients.</p><p><br /><strong>Conclusion.</strong> In RA patients with DLP, atorvastatin exerted a beneficial effect not only on the blood lipid profile, but also on the magnitude of inflammation and the elastic properties of vessels, and disease activity.