Macrophages and angiogenesis in rheumatic diseases.

Angiogenesis plays a key role in several rheumatic diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, systemic sclerosis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and vasculitides. An imbalance between angiogenic inducers and inhibitors seems to be a critical factor in pathogenesis of these diseases. Macrophages promote angiogenesis during rheumatoid arthritis. In addition, macrophages can produce a variety of pro-angiogenic factors that have been associated with the angiogenic response occurring during other rheumatic diseases. Lastly, macrophages could be a target in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and other rheumatic diseases. Nevertheless, further studies are needed to better elucidate the exact role of macrophage in angiogenesis in these diseases.