Maintained activity in ankylosing spondylitis patients treated with TNFi and/or NSAID for at least 12 weeks: a cross-sectional study in Brazil

• Published in: Advances in rheumatology (London, England) England), 2022-10, Vol.62 (1), p.38-10, Article 38
• Main Authors: de Toledo, Ricardo Acayaba, Grizzo, Felipe Merchan Ferraz, Fernandes, Vander, Calheiros, Renato, Russo, Ricardo T, Rosal, Gustavo, Marchese, Luiz Roberto Delboni, Tunala, Roberto, Watanabe, Renato, Birck, Marina Gabriela, Julian, Guilherme Silva, Forestiero, Francisco Jose
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Ankylosing spondylitis; Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal - therapeutic use; Axial radiographic spondyloarthritis; Brazil; Cross-Sectional Studies; Disease activity; Humans; Middle Aged; Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug; Patient-reported outcome; Real-world study; RHEUMATOLOGY; Spondylitis, Ankylosing - drug therapy; Treatment Outcome; Tumor Necrosis Factor Inhibitors
• ISSN: 2523-3106; 2523-3106
• DOI: 10.1186/s42358-022-00270-3

The aim of this study was to evaluate disease activity among patients with axial spondyloarthritis (AS) treated with tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi) and/or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for at least 12 weeks in private outpatient settings in Brazil. This was a cross-sectional, real-world study conducted in 17 Brazilian private health care institutes. Patients were selected if diagnosed with AS or axial radiographic spondyloarthritis (AxSpA) and treated with NSAIDs or TNFi for at least 12 weeks within the last 26 weeks prior to enrollment. The data were collected from interviewed-based and self-administered questionnaires from patients and physicians. Disease activity was defined as active (≥ 4), low /suboptimal (≥ 2 and