Early AxSpA Disease Activity Contributes to Disability

Disease activity in early axial spondyloarthritis is the most important contributor to disability over time, according to a new study published in Arthritis Care & Research.

Researchers analyzed 5 years of follow-up data for 644 patients with early axial spondyloarthritis from a prospective observational study of inflammatory back pain to gauge the long-term association between axial spondyloarthritis disease activity and disability.

Data from a total 5152 patient visits revealed that the Health Assessment Questionnaire for Ankylosing Spondylitis (HAQ-AS), a measure of disability, was positively and longitudinally associated with the Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Score with C-reactive protein (ASDAS-CRP), enthesitis score, Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Metrology Index, and female sex, researchers reported.

According to the chi-square automatic interaction detector method used for the study, ASDAS-CRP was the first variable with discriminative power on HAQ-AS. ASDAS-CRP cutoffs that separated different patient disability profiles largely followed previously defined cutoffs for ASDAS-CRP disease activity states.

“Disease activity contributes longitudinally to disability and is hierarchically superior to any other variable in explaining this health domain,” researchers concluded. “Enthesitis and spinal mobility are also key drivers of disability in early axial spondyloarthritis.”

—Jolynn Tumolo

Reference

Carvalho PD, Ruyssen-Witrand A, Marreiros A, Machado PM. Long-term association between disease activity and disability in early axial spondyloarthritis: results from a prospective observational study of inflammatory back pain. Arthritis Care Res. 2022;74(5):768-775.