RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Cardiovascular risk assessment and treatment in chronic inflammatory disorders in primary care
JF Heart
JO Heart
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and British Cardiovascular Society
SP 1957
OP 1962
DO 10.1136/heartjnl-2016-310111
VO 102
IS 24
A1 G Emanuel
A1 J Charlton
A1 M Ashworth
A1 M C Gulliford
A1 A Dregan
YR 2016
UL http://heart.bmj.com/content/102/24/1957.abstract
AB Objective To compare differences in cardiovascular (CV) risk factors assessment and management among patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) with that of matched controls.Methods A matched cohort study was conducted using primary care electronic health records for one London borough. All patients diagnosed with RA or IBD, and matched controls registered with local general practices on 12th of January 2014 were identified. The study compared assessment and treatment of CV risk factors (blood pressure, body mass index, cholesterol and smoking) in the year before, the year after, and 5 years after RA and IBD diagnosis.Results A total of 1121 patients with RA and 1875 patients with IBD were identified and matched with 4282 and, respectively, 7803 controls. Patients with RA were 25% (incidence rate ratio, 1.25, 95% CI 1.12 to 1.35) more likely to have a CV risk factor measured compared with matched controls. The difference declined to 8% (1.08, 1.04 to 1.14) over 5 years of follow-up. The corresponding figures for IBD were 26% (1.26, 1.16 to 1.38) and 10% (1.10, 1.05 to 1.15). Patients with RA showed higher antihypertensive prescription rates during 5 years of follow-up (OR, 1.37, 95% CI 1.14 to 1.65) and patients with IBD showed higher statin prescription rates in the year preceding diagnosis (2.30, 1.20 to 4.42). Incomplete CV risk assessment meant that QRISK scores could be calculated for less than a fifth (17%) and clinical recording of CV disease (CVD) risk scores among patients with RA and IBD was 11% and 6%, respectively.Conclusions The assessment and treatment of vascular risk in patients with RA and IBD in primary care is suboptimal, particularly with reference to CVD risk score calculation.