Is Giant Cell Arteritis Associated with Increased Risk of Cardiovascular Disease? A Meta-Analysis

Giant cell arteritis (GCA) is the most common form of vasculitis in individuals aged >50 years. While it has been hypothesized that GCA increases the risk of adverse cardiovascular events, existing literature presents conflicting findings. This meta-analysis aims to examine the risks of myocardial infarction (MI), stroke, and peripheral arterial disease (PAD) in patients with GCA. A comprehensive search of major bibliographic databases, including PubMed, EMBASE, Google Scholar, SCOPUS, and Web of Science, was conducted to identify studies on cardiovascular risks in GCA patients up to November 1, 2024. The RevMan (version 5.4) software was used with a random-effects model to calculate pooled hazard ratios (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI), using Der-Simonian and Laird's inverse-variance random-effects method. The meta-analysis included 10 studies with 518,402 participants (28,707 GCA patients and 489,695 controls). GCA was associated with a significantly increased risk of MI (HR, 1.74; 95% CI, 1.34-2.25; P < 0.0001), stroke (HR, 1.43; 95% CI, 1.33-1.54; P < 0.00001), and PAD (HR, 1.98; 95% CI, 1.53-2.57; P < 0.00001). This meta-analysis shows that GCA patients are at a significantly higher risk of MI, stroke, and PAD compared with controls. Further prospective studies are needed to confirm these findings, as early cardiovascular risk management could reduce the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events.