Predictors of Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis in Southwest China

Disease activity and widespread pain are main contributors to patient-reported global health in axial spondyloarthritis: an analysis of 6064 patients

Global health (GH) and health-related quality of life are patient priorities in axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA). Our objective was to assess the relative importance of disease-related factors including disease activity, and patient-related factors including comorbidities, to explain GH in axSpA. Post hoc cross-sectional analyses of 4 sets (COMOSPA, PERSPA, COMEDSPA, and DESIR) of patients fulfilling ASAS criteria for axSpA. GH was assessed through the ASAS Health Index (ASAS-HI) or the EuroQoL-5D-3L (EQ-5D). Disease-related factors included disease activity (ASDAS, psoriasis, arthritis, enthesitis, and CRP), disease duration, diagnostic delay, bamboo spine, and treatment. Non-disease-related factors included sociodemographic characteristics, comorbidities and chronic widespread pain. Multivariable logistic and linear regressions and partial variances (R2) were applied to identify independent determinants of GH. In 6064 patients (range 284-2756 across datasets), mean age ranged 38.9-45.8 years, 51-68% were male. GH was generally moderate: median ASAS-HI ranged 5.0-7.0. GH was explained by ASDAS (range of odds ratios, OR, 2.60-4.48) and chronic widespread pain (range of OR 2.19-8.39); other determinants included comorbidities and sociodemographic characteristics. Only 47-57% of the total variance in GH could be explained by the models; disease activity (partial variance, 16-26%) and chronic widespread pain (partial variance 12-15%) were the key contributing variables. A wide range of disease and non-disease-related variables usually collected in studies could only explain 47-57% of the variability in GH. Among these, disease activity and chronic widespread pain were most relevant and of similar magnitude of importance. These findings will be helpful for shared decision-making.

Quality of Life and Related Factors in Patients With Ankylosing Spondylitis: A Cross-Sectional Study Using 36-Item Short Form Survey (SF-36)

BACKGROUND

 Ankylosing spondylitis is a chronic condition that affects the vertebral and sacroiliac joints, causing progressive back pain and stiffness. Patients with this condition experience a lower quality of life compared to the general population, with physical health being more impacted than mental health. In Vietnam, little attention has been given to the quality of life of patients with ankylosing spondylitis, and there are conflicting studies on the factors that affect their quality of life. Therefore, it is essential to assess the quality of life of these patients to provide appropriate recommendations for improving their overall well-being.

METHODOLOGY

The descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on patients with ankylosing spondylitis who visited University Medical Center Ho Chi Minh City from March 2022 to May 2022. Participants were interviewed face-to-face using the 36-item short form survey (SF-36) questionnaire and the visual analogue scale. In addition, some information related to ankylosing spondylitis was also collected through medical records.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSION

Seventy-five patients met the inclusion criteria with a median age of 33 (26 - 37); men accounted for 68%. The mean physical and mental health scores on the SF-36 scale were 37.73 ± 9.30 and 47.04 ± 7.11, respectively. Young age, lower pain score and duration of illness, and higher education were associated with a high physical health score with p<0.05. Similarly, the educational level and occupation were positively correlated, and pain scores were inversely correlated with mental health with p< 0.05.

Prevalence of sleep disturbance in patients with ankylosing spondylitis: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS) patients face several challenges due to the nature of the disease and its physical and psychological complications. Sleep disorders are among the most important concerns. Sleep disorders can aggravate the signs and symptoms of the disease and ultimately reduce the quality of patients' lives. This study uses a systematic review and meta-analysis to pool the reported prevalence of sleep disorders among AS patients.

METHODS

To find related studies, the WoS, PubMed, ScienceDirect, Scopus, Embase, and Google Scholar databases were systematically searched without a lower time limit. Heterogeneity among the identified studies was checked using the I2 index, and the Begg and Mazumdar correlation test examined the existence of published bias. Comprehensive Meta-Analysis (v.2) software was adopted to analyze the data.

RESULTS

In the review of 18 studies with a sample size of 5,840, the overall pooled prevalence of sleep disorders among AS patients based on the random effects method was found to be 53% (95% CI: 44.9-61). The highest and lowest prevalence was in Egypt at 90% and Australia at 19.2%, respectively. Our meta-regression results show that with the increase in 'sample size' and 'year of publication', the overall prevalence of sleep disorders in patients with AS decreases (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

The results of the present study indicate a high and significant prevalence of sleep disorders among AS patients. Thus, health policymakers and healthcare providers must focus on timely diagnosis and effective educational and therapeutic interventions for the prevention and proper treatment of sleep disorders in this population of patients.