Atherosclerosis as an autoimmune disease

The first medical conference on the subject of atherosclerosis and the immune system was held this year in Geneva Switzerland (8-11/3/2001) and included presentations by leading researchers in this field. Briefly, the discussions concluded that the immune system has a major role in the induction of atherosclerosis, at the beginning, and in the initiation of the atherosclerotic plaque rupture, in the end. Moreover, modifications in the inflammatory system have been shown (only in experimental models) to reduce the rate of the development of atherosclerosis. It might be assumed that some part of the role that statins in this event reduction can be attributed to the anti-inflammatory property of the drug. It is clear that better understanding of this issue will evolve, and in the future, new modalities of treatment will develop that will act by influencing the inflammatory system.