Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is increased among patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The underlying cause is not clear. In this prospective study, patients with early RA were investigated for associations between subclinical atherosclerosis and CVD risk factors as well as inflammation. At diagnosis, RA patients were recruited into a prospective study. A subgroup was included (n = 55) for ultrasound measurements of intima–media thickness (IMT) at inclusion (T0), and after 5 years (T5) and 11

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... years (T11). Thirty-one age and gender-matched controls were also included for comparison. IMT increased significantly between T0 and T11 among patients and controls (p 0.05 for all). In simple regression models, IMT at T11 was significantly associated with age (p We found increased atherosclerotic development among patients with RA compared with controls 11 years after diagnosis. The atherosclerotic burden was associated with disease severity at baseline.