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  • What We've Learned
Assessing Heart Disease and Stroke Risk in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE)
Other-Types-of-Arthritis-3.0-1-1
Scientific Study Title:
Start Date:
  • 2000
End Date:
  • 2001
Research Category
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What did we find?

Only a third of the medical charts documented that a cholesterol test had been performed. Half of the cholesterol tests that were performed were at least slightly abnormal, but in only the minority was a definite action taken. Blood pressure, blood sugar and smoking were charted in more than half of the records. Obesity was recorded in a third. Only 1/16 of the records noted the presence or absence of a family history of heart disease. It must be kept in mind that the fact that information is not written down in the medical chart does not mean that it was not obtained or that it was not obtained by another physician, such as the family doctor.

What is the impact for people living with arthritis?

There have now been a number of studies which suggest that doctors are not checking persons with SLE for heart disease risk factors as much as one might expect based on the recent scientific reports of a greatly increased risk of heart attack and stroke among people with SLE. This study concluded that much more needs to be done and that physicians need to be more aggressive in both looking for heart disease and doing something about abnormal levels of risk factors. People with SLE and similar disorders should have a blood pressure check, a diabetes check, a cholesterol check, and a check of another blood substance, homocysteine, as well as reducing weight and stopping smoking. The removal of these risk factors by treatment, stopping smoking, losing weight, and so on has been shown in the general population to protect against heart disease and stroke. This research attracted public interest because of its high relevance to the individual with SLE. Recent work suggests that rheumatoid arthritis also has a higher risk of heart disease and stroke, although less than for SLE. Many of these same lessons should be applied to individuals with rheumatoid arthritis.

The Research Team

Principal Investigator

  • Adeeba Al Herz MBBS, FRCPC, ABIM Rheumatology Fellow, Division of Rheumatology University of British Columbia Arthritis Research Centre of Canada

Co-Investigators

  • Stephanie Ensworth MD, FRCPC Division of Rheumatology University of British Columbia
  • Kamran Shojania, MD, FRCPC, Clinical Trialist, Rheumatology, Arthritis Research Canada (University of British Columbia)
  • John Esdaile, MD, MPH, FRCPC, FCAHS, MACR, Scientific Director Emeritus, Arthritis Research Canada (University of British Columbia)

Media and Infographics

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