THU0320 New Parameters for Identifying Subclinical Atherosclerosis in Patients with Primary SjöGren’s Syndrome: A Pilot Study

Background Clinical and biochemical data suggest that autoimmune diseases are associated with endothelial dysfunction and increased atherosclerosis. We have previously shown that asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) levels and coronary flow reserve (CFR) are impaired in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (1), but it is not known whether the same is true for patients with primary Sjögren’s syndrome (pSS). Objectives To investigate sub-clinical cardiovascular involvement in pSS patients by means of ADMA, coronary flow reserve (CFR), intima media thickness (cIMT), pulse wave velocity (PWV) and myocardial deformation. Methods The study involved 22 outpatients with pSS (6 males, 16 females; mean age 60.14±7.81 years) and no documentable cardiovascular disease, and 22 age- and gender-matched controls. Dipyridamole transthoracic stress echocardiography was used to evaluate wall motion and CFR in the distal segment of the left anterior descending coronary artery before and after dipyridamole infusion (0.84 mg/kg over six minutes). A CFR value of