Cardiovascular disease in systemic lupus erythematosus: an update

Abstract

In 2011 systemic lupus erythematosus was officially recognized as a unique risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) by the American Heart Association. While modern therapies have prolonged the lives of lupus patients, their risk for CVD is increased at a rate that traditional CVD risk factors alone cannot explain. This chapter reviews the recent research on disease biomarkers and risk-calculators in conjunction with imaging techniques that have shown subclinical atherosclerosis prior to the development of symptoms in patients with lupus. We also discuss relevant drug trials on antimalarials, immunoregulators, statins, and aspirin and their effect on CVD in patients with lupus.