The Relationship between Disease Activity, Quality of Life, Functional Status, Spinal Mobility, Heel Enthesitis, and Cartilage Thickness in Patients with Axial Spondyloarthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate lower extremity cartilage thickness in axial spondyloarthritis (SpA) patients and healthy controls using ultrasound (US) and to determine the relationship between the indices, quality of life, enthesopathy, and cartilage thickness of patients with axial SpA. Materials and Methods: This study included 73 axial SpA patients and 30 healthy controls. The patients with axial SpA were divided into two groups as with and without heel enthesitis. Demographic data, disease duration, and medical treatments of patients were recorded. The cartilage (hip, talar, and knee), plantar fascia, and Achilles tendon thicknesses of both healthy controls and axial SpA patients were measured by US. The Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Metrology Index (BASMI), Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI), patient global assessment (PGA), and Ankylosing Spondylitis Quality of Life (ASQoL) scores of patients were evaluated. Results: There was no difference between the groups in terms of demographic data and body mass index. The axial SpA groups with and without heel enthesitis were similar in terms of medical treatment and disease duration. The axial SpA patients with heel enthesitis had thinner cartilages than those without heel enthesitis (P < 0.05). The axial SpA patients without heel enthesitis had thinner cartilage thicknesses than the healthy control group (P < 0.05). There were statistically significant differences between the two groups in terms of the BASDAI, BASFI, BASMI, and ASQoL scores. These indices were negatively correlated with cartilage thickness (P < 0.05; r: -0.420). Conclusion: Lower extremity cartilage thickness is associated with disease activity, quality of life, and spinal mobility in patients with axial SpA.