The effect of obesity in individuals with ankylosing spondylitis: a single center cohort study

Abstract

Objective: In this study, it was aimed to compare the disease activity and functional status of individuals with Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS) according to body mass index (BMI). Materials and Methods: This study, which was planned as a single-center cohort study, included 437 individuals followed by XXX University Rheumatology Clinic and diagnosed with AS by a rheumatologist. XXX University is a centre in Turkey. After the demographic information was recorded, disease activities were evaluated with the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), and functional levels with the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI). Participants were categorized in 3 groups according to BMI data based on the criteria of the World Health Organization: normal weight:20-24.9; overweight: 25-29.9; obese:>= 30. Results: Among 437 patients with AS, 39.58% are overweight and 30.21% are obese. We obtained that obese compared with normal weight had significant higher BASFI score (R:-0.37, 95%CI-0.66/-0.08, p:0.006). On the other hand, there was no association between BASDAI and obesity (R:-0.50, 95%CI- 1.11/ 1.22, p:0.130). Conclusion: This study showed that BMI of Turkish AS individuals in a single center cohort had no effect on disease activity, but obesity had a worse effect on functional level.