Part of a major UK trial to find out if taking statins could reduce the number of rheumatoid arthritis patients dying of heart attacks and strokes is to be opened in Belfast.

According to the Arthritis Research Campaign (ARC), rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients have an increased risk of dying from cardiovascular complications compared to the general population — but few are routinely prescribed the cholesterol-lowering drugs, statins.

The charity is urging eligible RA patients registered with Musgrave Park Hospital in Belfast to join almost 4,000 people involved in a UK-wide five-year £1.1m trial. While based at the University of Manchester, the trial will involve more than 60 rheumatology departments throughout the UK. It is being funded by ARC and the British Heart Foundation.

The Northern Ireland research team is led by Belfast rheumatologist Dr Andrew Cairns. He said that if statins were shown to be effective in reducing cardiovascular deaths in rheumatoid arthritis, most patients with this condition should be put on the drugs as a matter of course.

“It has been known for some time that there is a link between rheumatoid arthritis and cardiovascular mortality. This may be in large part due to early and more advanced blood vessel damage due to high levels of inflammation in RA.

“Statins lead to a reduction of cardiovascular death rates by reducing cholesterol and possibly inflammation. However, most previous trials of statins have not included patients with rheumatoid arthritis,” he said.

Statins have been routinely given to people who have had heart attacks to lower the risk of them suffering a second for the past few years.

Arc said that new guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) extended the use of the drugs to an extra three million people with a 20% risk over ten years of developing cardiovascular disease, which can lead to heart attack, angina and stroke. It is the responsibility of GPs to establish whether or not the 20% risk exists.

One of Northern Ireland’s best known cardiologists, Professor Mahendra Varma, feels so strongly about the wide-ranging benefits of statins that he once called for them to be put in the water supply.

More than 60 rheumatology departments around the UK will be involved in recruiting RA patients over the age of 50 or those who have suffered from the condition for more than 10 years, irrespective of their age, who are not already taking a statin.

Patients taking part in the trial will be given either a statin or a placebo, in addition to any other treatment they require for their arthritis and will all receive advice on how to reduce the risk of heart disease by exercising, eating healthily and stopping smoking.

One hoped-for knock-on effect of the trial would be a greater awareness of the cardiovascular complications of RA, and a greater emphasis on patients changing their lifestyles to reduce the risks.

For more information about the trial, you can log on to the TRACE RA trial website (http://www.dgoh.nhs.uk/tra cera ) or by contacting 0161 2755639.