Subclinical Cardiac Involvement in Patients With Inflamatory Bowel Disease

Cardiovascular manifestations in patients with IBD mostly occur as immune-related consequences and include the following: pericarditis, myocarditis, venous and arterial thromboembolism, left ventricle impairment, arrhythmias and conduction disorders and valvulopathy .

The prevalence of classical cardiovascular risk factors is relatively lower in IBD patients than in the general population . However, the risk of coronary heart disease is higher in IBD patients .

The pathophysiology of cardiac involvement may be Systemic inflammation for prolonged periods that can cause platelet aggregation and endothelial dysfunction leading to the development of atherosclerosis and CVD .

The chronic inflammatory condition found in IBD is the key element in the pathogenesis of arrhythmias.

In IBD, inflammation causes mitral and aortic valvulopathies , excess TNF-α causes the thickening and shortening of the leaflets, resulting in regurgitation .