GLP-1 receptor agonists may protect against cardiac events in patients with psoriatic arthritis

Patients with psoriatic arthritis who received GLP-1 receptor agonists are at a lower risk of developing major adverse cardiovascular events than those not treated with these agents, with an added benefit of lower risk of death.

Dr Nanuka Tsibadze (Jefferson Einstein Hospital, PA, USA) reported data from an observational, retrospective study using electronic health record information from the TriNetX database [1]. Patients were included in the analysis if they were aged 18 years or older and had a diagnosis of psoriatic arthritis between January 2015 and December 2024. Two cohorts were based on use versus non-use of GLP-1 receptor agonists (semaglutide, liraglutide, exenatide, and lixisenatide). Matching between the 2 cohorts was performed based on age, sex, race, medical diagnoses, and therapy use (cardiovascular agents, insulin, and therapies for psoriatic arthritis). The primary outcome was the incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events.

In total, database analysis identified 4,104 patients with psoriatic arthritis receiving GLP-1 receptor agonists and 86,432 patients not receiving GLP-1 receptor agonists. Following matching, a total of 3,303 patients were included in each cohort. Regarding outcomes, patients with psoriatic arthritis receiving GLP-1 receptor agonists had a lower risk of developing ischemic heart disease (RR 0.715; 95%CI 0.610-0.838), cerebrovascular diseases (RR 0.605; 95%CI 0.494-0.740), acute myocardial infarction (RR 0.578; 95%CI 0.434-0.769), cerebral infarction (RR 0.633; 95%CI 0.457-0.876), heart failure (RR 0.703; 95%CI 0.618-0.799), or death (RR 0.307; 95%CI 0.222-0.425).

“Patients with psoriatic arthritis treated with GLP-1 receptor agonists might have a lower risk for developing major adverse cardiovascular events and reduced mortality compared with those not receiving GLP-1 receptor agonists,” concluded Dr Tsibadze. “GLP-1 receptor agonists may be a promising adjunct therapy in the management of patients with inflammatory arthritis, but we need further prospective trials to understand better the mechanisms underlying these outcomes.”

1. Tsibadze N, et al. Mortality and major adverse cardiac events (MACE) with GLP-1 receptor agonists in psoriatic arthritis. ACR Convergence, 24–29 October 2025, Chicago, IL, USA.

Medical writing support was provided by Mihai Surducan, PhD.

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Posted on 29 October 2025