Background/Purpose: To evaluate the influence of TNF-α inhibitor on lipid profile and atherogenic index of plasma (AIP) in axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) patients with long term use of stable dose TNF-α inhibitor.

Methods: axSpA patients were enrolled in the Catholic Axial Spondyloarthritis COhort (CASCO). We collected their data annually and analyzed their lipid profile and AIP [logarithm of ratio of triglyceride (TG) to high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C)]. Comparison was conducted between TNF-α inhibitor user group and non-user group. Additionally, lipid profile and AIP of TNF-α inhibitor user group were compared over 2 years.

Results: A total of 238 axSpA patients were enrolled for the present study, including 132 TNF-α inhibitor users and 106 non-users. Changes of total cholesterol (TC), TG, low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and HDL-C over 2 years did not show significant difference between TNF-α inhibitor user group and non-user group. When baseline data and two-year follow-up data were compared within the TNF-α inhibitor user group, there was no significant increase in TG, LDL-C, HDL-C, or AIP. Only TC level was slightly increased in the two-year follow data for the TNF-α inhibitor user group (177.86 ± 28.73 vs. 183.08 ± 29.82, P = 0.019).

Conclusion: Long term use of stable dose TNF-α inhibitor didn’t increase atherogenic lipid profile or AIP compared to the control group. Furthermore, atherogenic lipid profile or AIP was not increased significantly in the TNF-α inhibitor user group over two-year follow up. Therefore, using TNF-α inhibitor for a long-term might not affect atherosclerosis of axSpA.

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ACR Meeting Abstracts - https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/impact-of-tnf-%ce%b1-inhibitor-on-lipid-profile-and-atherogenic-index-of-plasma-in-axial-spondyloarthritis-two-year-follow-up-data-from-the-catholic-axial-spondyloarthritis-cohort-casco/