Biologic Therapy for Psoriasis Might Reduce High-risk Plaque in Heart Arteries, Study Suggests

Dec, 2020 - By SMI

According to a recent study, researchers have revealed that biologic therapy, a protein-based infusions to suppress inflammation patients with psoriasis also exhibited its potential in diminishing high-risk plaque in heart arteries, over one year. Moreover, researchers suggested that chronic inflammation in people with psoriasis are at higher risk of developing coronary artery disease. Biologic therapy medications are proteins that are administered through injection or infusion and this medication suppress the inflammation process by barring the action of cytokines, a group of proteins that stimulate systemic inflammation.

Nehal N. Mehta, senior author stated, “Having inflamed plaque that is prone to rupture increases the risk of heart attack five-fold within ten years. This is the first time an imaging study in humans has shown what one year of ongoing, untreated inflammation can do to arteries of the heart and that we can reverse this damage. Untreated inflammation is dangerous. You are just waiting for a heart attack or stroke to happen”.

The study included 209 middle-aged patients of age group of 37-62 with psoriasis who participated in the Psoriasis Atherosclerosis Cardiometabolic Initiative at the National Institutes of Health. Out of 209 participants, 124 participants underwent biologic therapy, and remaining 85 were in the control group, and were treated by using topical creams and light therapy. Moreover, researchers conducted cardiac computed tomography (CT) scans on all the participants before the therapy and one year later to evaluate the effects of biologic therapy on arteries of the heart and later research did a comparison of CT results between the two groups.

Researchers observed that patients who received biologic therapy after one year of treatment, exhibited an 8% drop in coronary plaque, and participants in the control group encountered marginally increased coronary plaque progression. In addition, researchers also noted that patients who received biologic therapy also exhibited reduced coronary plaque after adjusting cardiovascular risk factors and severity of psoriasis.