Ozenc Inan1, Ebru Aytekin2, Yasemin Pekin Dogan2, Ilhan Nahit Mutlu3, Kübra Aydemir4, Nuran Oz5, Nil Sayiner Caglar2

1Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Bursa City Hospital, Bursa, Türkiye
2Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Istanbul Training and Research Hospital, Istanbul, Türkiye
3Department of Radiology, Istanbul Cam and Sakura City Hospital, Istanbul, Türkiye
4Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Adıyaman Training and Research Hospital, Adıyaman, Türkiye
5Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Division of Rheumatology, Marmara University Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul, Türkiye

Keywords: Ankylosing spondylitis, axial spondyloarthropathy, BASDAI, disease activity, SPARCC score.

Abstract

Objectives: The study aimed to evaluate the correlation between the clinical disease activity of axial spondyloarthropathy (axSpA) and magnetic resonance imaging findings of the sacroiliac joint.

Patients and methods: Thirty-two patients (21 males, 11 females; mean age: 39.3±9.2 years; range, 18 to 55 years) who were diagnosed with axSpA according to the Assessment in Spondyloarthritis International Society classification criteria between November 2015 and August 2017 were included in this cross-sectional study. Visual Analog Scale (VAS), Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Score (ASDAS)-erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and ASDAS-C-reactive protein (CRP) were used as the indicators of clinical activity. Magnetic resonance imaging of the sacroiliac joint was performed and the Spondyloarthritis Research Consortium of Canada (SPARCC) score was evaluated by a radiologist who was blinded to the clinical and laboratory parameters of the patients.

Results: The mean duration of symptom onset was 9.3±7.7 years, and the mean duration of diagnosis was 3.6±2.8 years. Human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-B27 was positive in 16 (50%) patients. There was no correlation between the SPARCC score and VAS, BASDAI, MASES, BASFI, ASDAS-CRP, ASDAS-ESR, ESR, and CRP values (p>0.05). In the HLA-B27 subgroup analyses, a statistically significant correlation was found between HLA-B27-negative patients and SPARCC score (r=0.639, p=0.008).

Conclusion: No relationship was found between other clinical disease parameters and sacroiliac joint imaging findings, except for the relationship between the SPARCC and BASDAI in HLA-B27- negative patients with axSpA.

Citation: Inan O, Aytekin E, Pekin Dogan Y, Mutlu IN, Aydemir K, Oz N, et al. Correlation between clinical disease activity and sacroiliac magnetic resonance imaging detection in axial spondyloarthropathy. Arch Rheumatol 2024;39(1):115-122. doi: 10.46497/ ArchRheumatol.2024.10401.

Ethics Committee Approval

The study protocol was approved by the Istanbul Training and Research Hospital Clinical Research Ethics Committee (date: 06.11.2015, no: 2015/726). The study was conducted in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki.

Author Contributions

Material preparation, data collection, and analysis were performed by O.I., E.A., Y.P.D., K.A., N.O.; The first draft of the manuscript was written by E.A., O.I., N.S.C., I.N.M. All authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All co-authors read and approved the final manuscript. All authors contributed to the study conception and design.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declared no conflicts of interest with respect to the authorship and/or publication of this article.

Financial Disclosure

The authors received no financial support for the research and/or authorship of this article.

Data Sharing Statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.