Abstract Background Patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA) have increased cardiovascular risk beyond traditional factors. Endothelial activation is an early and potentially reversible stage of atherogenesis, and circulating adhesion molecules such as intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) have been proposed as markers of vascular involvement in inflammatory diseases. This study aimed to compare serum ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 levels in patients with ankylosing spondylitis and psoriatic arthritis versus controls, and to examine their associations with disease activity, systemic inflammatory burden, cardiovascular risk profile, and treatment status. Methods This cross-sectional study included 154 participants recruited between 2023 and 2024, including 83 patients with AS, 40 with PsA, and 31 controls. Disease activity was assessed using ASDAS-CRP (AS) and DAS28-CRP (PsA). Inflammatory markers, lipid profile, cardiovascular risk scores, and treatment history were recorded. Serum ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 concentrations were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Group comparisons used Kruskal–Wallis and Mann–Whitney U tests; correlations used Spearman or Pearson coefficients as appropriate. Multivariable linear regression was applied to identify independent predictors of VCAM-1. Results Serum VCAM-1 and ICAM-1 levels did not differ significantly between AS, PsA, and controls. VCAM-1 showed positive correlations with C-reactive protein (ρ = 0.247, p = 0.002) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ρ = 0.163, p = 0.044), whereas ICAM-1 showed no significant associations with inflammatory, metabolic, or vascular parameters. In multivariable analysis, body mass index was the only independent predictor of VCAM-1 (β = 0.198, p = 0.027). In AS, higher disease activity defined by ASDAS-CRP > 2.1 was associated with higher CRP ( p = 0.002), ESR ( p = 0.04), and VCAM-1 concentrations ( p = 0.002). Biologic-naïve patients had higher VCAM-1 levels than treated patients ( p = 0.046), while those receiving Janus kinase inhibitors had lower VCAM-1 compared with biologic-naïve individuals ( p = 0.014). Conclusions Although ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 levels were comparable between patients and controls, VCAM-1 reflected inflammatory activity and treatment status, particularly in AS. VCAM-1 may represent a more sensitive marker of endothelial activation than ICAM-1 in treated spondyloarthritis.
Markov et al. (Thu,) studied this question.