Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome and Related Factors in RA Patients Referring to Imam Khomeini Hospital Rheumatology from October 2013 to October 2014

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disease that is associated with the risk of atherosclerotic disease. Cardiovascular disease is the main cause of mortality in RA patients. In recent studies, the prevalence of metabolic syndrome and its components in RA patients has been shown. By measuring the risk factors for the risk of developing a metabolic syndrome, the degree of mortality and cardiovascular and morbidity in patients with RA can be counted.
This cross-sectional study was performed on 200 RA patients based on the ACR classification, from patients who referred to the rheumatology clinic of Imam Khomeini Hospital from March 1992 to March 93. The main outcome was the prevalence of metabolic syndrome based on the two criteria of the International Federation of Diabetes and the Iranian definition. The secondary outcomes of the study were the prevalence of various components of the metabolic syndrome, as well as various demographic, anthropometric, laboratory, and RA drugs used in the metabolic syndrome.
 Metabolic syndrome was significantly associated with smoking. Among RA, prednisolone (glucocorticoids) and azathioprine, there was a significant increase in the chance of having a metabolic syndrome, and there was a significant association between the metabolic syndrome and the inflammatory factors of CRP or ESR, anti CCP and RF were not found. But DRA was lower in subjects with metabolic syndrome than in others.
Metabolic syndrome is a high prevalence in RA patients. Considering the risk factors responsible for increasing the chance of developing a metabolic syndrome in this potentially high risk population is necessary.