Prediction of Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events by Triglyceride Glucose Index in Predominantly Male Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis

Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic and chronic autoimmune disease that is characterized by persistent joint inflammation. RA patients experience a considerably increased risk of cardiovascular-related morbidity and mortality. The current study investigated the association between triglyceride glucose (TyG) index and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) in a predominantly male cohort of RA patients. Methods: A total of 1613 RA patients (81.53% male) were selected from the Kailuan study. The TyG index was calculated as the logarithmic product of fasting blood triglyceride and fasting blood glucose divided by two. MACEs were defined as the composite of non-fatal myocardial infarctions and non-fatal strokes. Cox proportional hazards analysis was performed to study the association between the TyG index and MACEs. Results: A total of 59 MACEs occurred during the median follow-up time of 5.32 years. Following adjustment for age and gender, analysis by multivariable Cox proportional hazards (model 1) showed that an elevated TyG index was associated with an increased risk of MACEs (quartile 2, hazard ratio (HR): 2.741, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.220–6.157, p = 0.015; quartile 4, HR: 2.521, 95% CI: 1.074–5.917, p = 0.034). After adjustment for other variables, Cox proportional hazards analysis (model 2) showed that an elevated TyG index was independently associated with an increased risk of MACEs (quartile 2, HR: 2.348, 95% CI: 1.009–5.465, p = 0.048). In addition, subgroup analysis showed a higher TyG index was significantly linked to an increased risk of MACEs in patients aged more than 65 years (quartile 2, HR: 6.048, 95% CI: 1.311–27.908, p = 0.021; quartile 4, HR: 12.074, 95% CI: 1.438–101.358, p = 0.022). Conclusions: The TyG index was associated with an increased risk of MACEs in a predominantly male cohort of RA patients. This index may be helpful for the prediction of MACEs in male patients with RA. Clinical Trial Registration: Registration number in the Chinese clinical trial registry: ChiCTR-TNRC-11001489.