Severe Psoriasis Increases Risk for Heart Disease
Research links severe psoriasis to coronary microvascular dysfunction.
Researchers have found further evidence that patients with severe psoriasis are at higher risk for cardiovascular disease.
In this study, a total of 503 patients with psoriasis, and without clinical cardiovascular disease, underwent transthoracic Doppler echocardiography to evaluate coronary microcirculation. Investigators found a high prevalence of coronary microvascular dysfunction in more than 30% of asymptomatic patients within the study population.
"Previous studies have shown that patients with severe psoriasis have an increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. However, there has been limited research on the specific mechanisms underlying this increased risk, particularly regarding coronary microvascular dysfunction,” explains lead investigator Stefano Piaserico, MD, PhD, Dermatology Unit, Department of Medicine, University of Padova, in a news release. “We wanted to further investigate the prevalence of coronary microvascular dysfunction, as assessed by coronary flow reserve (CFR), in a large cohort of patients with severe psoriasis and its association with psoriasis severity and duration, as well as other patient characteristics. Patients with a reduced CFR underwent angio-CT to exclude a stenosis of the coronary arteries, and no patients showed coronary artery disease. Therefore, all patients with an impaired CFR in our cohort were affected by coronary microvascular dysfunction.”
The study showed that psoriasis severity, assessed by the Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) score, and the duration of the disease were independently associated with lower CFR, along with the presence of psoriatic arthritis. Furthermore, results from the study showed that conventional cardiovascular risk factors, such as tobacco use, hyperlipidemia, and diabetes mellitus, were not independently associated with reduced CFR in patients with severe psoriasis.
These findings emphasize the importance of considering inflammation and psoriasis-related factors in assessing cardiovascular risk in patients with severe psoriasis.
Dr. Piaserico adds, "We should diagnose and actively search for microvascular dysfunction in patients with psoriasis, as this population is at particularly high risk.”
It’s possible that early and effective treatment of psoriasis would restore the dysfunction and eventually prevent the future risk of myocardial infarction and heart failure associated with it. Some preliminary studies showed that coronary microvascular dysfunction is restored after a treatment with biologics, he notes, adding that prospective studies are needed to confirm whether these findings translate into reductions in cardiovascular events.
The results are published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology,