Spondyloarthritis & psoriatic arthritis
Insights into axial spondyloarthritis features and the development of imaging evidence of sacroiliitis during long-term follow-up in routine clinical practice
Authors' conclusion
Overall, diagnosed and classified axSpA patients have similar clinical presentation and disease burden. In approximately 1 in 10 patients, axSpA diagnosis was made without imaging evidence of sacroiliitis, with a negligible number developing sacroiliitis on imaging during long-term follow-up.
Study context
- Population
- Consecutive newly diagnosed axSpA patients in the prospective GLAS cohort, 2009–2019 (mean age 38 ± 12 years; 55% male; 75% HLA-B27+)
- Participants
- 305 participants
- Exposure
- r-axSpA vs nr-axSpA; nr-axSpA imaging arm vs clinical arm of ASAS classification criteria
- r-axSpAn = 170
- Outcome
- Characteristics and SpA features, r-axSpA vs nr-axSpA
Methodological detailsconsecutive newly diagnosed patients, multivariable logistic regression
- Consecutive newly diagnosed patients
- Multivariable logistic regression
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
- r-axSpA more often male and more often elevated CRP than nr-axSpA
- nr-axSpA more often inflammatory back pain and positive family history of SpA
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Clinical diagnosis without imaging evidence of sacroiliitis
- Patients diagnosed without imaging evidence of sacroiliitis
- 38 (12%)
Later development of sacroiliitis on imaging among patients diagnosed without imaging evidence · median follow-up 8 years
- Developed sacroiliitis on imaging
- 2 (5%)
Median diagnostic delay (whole cohort)
- Median diagnostic delay, years (IQR 2-13)
- 6
Original publication
Insights into axial spondyloarthritis features and the development of imaging evidence of sacroiliitis during long-term follow-up in routine clinical practice. Arthritis Res Ther. Published 22 April 2026. doi:10.
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