Spondyloarthritis & psoriatic arthritis
Trends in Opioid Prescriptions in Individuals With Axial Spondyloarthritis in the United States and United Kingdom in the Last Two Decades: Analysis of Electronic Health Records and Insurance Claims Data
Authors' conclusion
Opioid prescription rates remained stable over time in the United Kingdom, whereas they slightly decreased in the United States as TNFi uptake increased.
Study context
- Population
- Adults with axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) in the UK (IQVIA Medical Research Database (IMRD), 18–89 years) and US (MarketScan (MarketScan), 18–65 years)
- Participants
- 1,689 vs 18,858
- Exposure
- IMRD vs MarketScan
- IMRDn = 1,689
- MarketScann = 18,858
- Outcome
- Percentage changes in annual opioid prescription rates (joinpoint regression), relative to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and TNFi
Methodological detailstwo observational databases, joinpoint regression
- Two observational databases
- Joinpoint regression
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Annual opioid prescription rates, percentage change
- IMRD 2001–2007: decreased by
- 2.5% (95% CI −9.1 to 1.9)
- IMRD 2007–2016: increased by
- 3.9% (95% CI −3.0 to 14.2)
- IMRD 2016–2020: decreased by
- 0.4% (95% CI −11.2 to 2.9)
- MarketScan 2008–2016: decreased by
- 1.5% (95% CI −3.0 to 2.0)
- MarketScan 2016–2021: decreased by
- 8.6% (95% CI −15.2 to −5.7)
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Annual tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi) prescriptions, percentage change (MarketScan only) · 2008 to 2021
- MarketScan: increased by
- 1.8% (95% CI 1.1 to 2.5)
Original publication
Trends in Opioid Prescriptions in Individuals With Axial Spondyloarthritis in the United States and United Kingdom in the Last Two Decades: Analysis of Electronic Health Records and Insurance Claims Data. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). Published 21 October 2025. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →