Intervention of integrative medicine treatment has impact on serum levels of ET-1, TNF-α, MLT in RA-CVD.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic autoimmune disease that can destroy peripheral joints. However, very little is known regarding specific biological marker for RA in Chinese patients. In this study, we determined the serum biomarkers and clinical features of RA-CVD. We also evaluated the short-term efficacy of routine RA treatment combined with integrative medicine treatment on RA-CVD. We found that anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (CCP) and disease activity score in 28 joints (DAS28) are associated with risks of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in RA. And, melatonin (MLT) may play a negative regulatory role in cardiovascular damage in patients with RA. Furthermore, endothelin (ET-1) and inflammatory markers may be subclinical cardiovascular damages in RA. Moreover, of the 17 patients with RA-CVD, test results of ET-1, TNF-α and OSCAR after integrative medicine treatment were significantly decreased than before treatment. Collectively, our results provide a therapeutic potential of integrative medicine to the treatment of RA-CVD.