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Abstract Number: 2887

Chronic Pain and Assessment of Pain Sensitivity in Patients with Established Axial Spondyloarthritis – a Cross-Sectional Study

Elisabeth Mogard1, Tor Olofsson2, Stefan Bergman3, Ann Bremander4, Lars Erik Kristensen5, Jack Kvistgaard Olsen6, Johan K Wallman7 and Elisabet Lindqvist8, 1Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Section of Rheumatology, Lund University, Faculty of Medicine and Skåne University Hospital, Lund, Sweden, 2Lund University, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Rheumatology, Lund, Sweden, Lund, Sweden, 3University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden, 4Spenshult Research and Development Center, Halmstad, Sweden, 5Department of Rheumatology, Copenhagen University Hospital, Frederiksberg and Bispebjerg, The Parker Institute, Copenhagen, Denmark, 6Department of Rheumatology, Copenhagen University Hospital, Fredriksberg and Bispebjerg, The Parker Institute, Copenhagen, Denmark, 7Department of Clincial Sciences Lund, Rheumatology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden, 8Department of Clinical Sciences Lund,Section of Rheumatology, Lund University, Faculty of Medicine and Skåne University Hospital, Lund, Sweden

Meeting: 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting

Keywords: ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and axial spondyloarthritis, Chronic pain, Disease Activity

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Session Information

Date: Tuesday, October 23, 2018

Title: 5T112 ACR Abstract: Spondyloarthritis Incl PsA–Clinical V: Tx of PsA & Peripheral SpA (2886–2891)

Session Type: ACR Concurrent Abstract Session

Session Time: 4:30PM-6:00PM

Background/Purpose: Pain remains a common and debilitating symptom in arthritis, despite good options to treat inflammation. In axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA), data on chronic pain remain scarce.

Objective: To assess self-reported and observed aspects of pain in subgroups of axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA), and to investigate associations between these pain aspects and different health outcome measures.

Methods: A cross-sectional study of patients with axSpA (ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and undifferentiated spondyloarthritis (USpA, based on ICD10 codes)), consecutively enrolled in the SPARTAKUS cohort (n=226). Of 197 patients, for whom all relevant information was available, 173 patients fulfilled the ASAS axSpA criteria, and 115 the modified New York criteria. We investigated self-reported pain (intensity, duration, and distribution) and categorized patients into chronic widespread pain, chronic regional pain and no chronic pain. In addition, pain sensitivity (pain threshold, pain tolerance and temporal summation of pain), was assessed by computerized cuff pressure algometry (CPA). Comparisons between AS and USpA and between women and men were performed using Student`s t-test or Chi-squared test. Associations of pain sensitivity measures and different health outcome measures, adjusted for age and sex, were analyzed by multivariate linear regression.

Results: All assessed pain measures, except for number of pain regions, were similar in AS and USpA. Almost 50% of the axSpA patients, reported chronic widespread pain (AS 42%, USpA 53%), which was more pronounced in women (60% vs. 34% for men, p<0.001). For pain sensitivity measures, women had lower pain tolerance as compared to men (AS (p=0.03), USpA (p=0.01)), while pain threshold was lower only for women with USpA (p<0.01) (Table). Furthermore, irrespective of diagnosis subgroup, lower pain tolerance was associated with higher disease activity, more fatigue and less spinal mobility.

Conclusion: In this population-based, cross-sectional study of established axial spondyloarthritis, chronic widespread pain was common, affecting 50% of the patients. A clear sex difference was found, with women reporting worse measures for both self-reported pain and pain sensitivity. Overall, lower pain tolerance was associated with worse disease activity, fatigue and spinal mobility. CPA shows promising results regarding assessment of pain sensitivity and provides additional information in pain evaluation in AxSpA.

Table

Table Comparisons of clinical characteristics and pain variables for AS and USpA and by women and men

AS

USpA

AS vs. USpA

All

Women

Men

All

Women

Men

Variables

n = 110

n = 36

n = 74

p-value

n = 116

n = 79

n = 37

p-value

p-value

Age, years

56 (13)

56 (12)

55 (13)

0.681

48 (13)

46 (12)

51 (14)

0.082

≤0.001

Symptom duration, years

30 (14)

31 (14)

29 (14)

0.477

21 (13)

19 (12)

24 (15)

0.048

≤0.001

HLA-B27 pos, n = 218, n (%)

89 (82)

25 (69)

64 (86)

0.012

64 (58)

37 (47)

27 (73)

0.002

≤0.001

ASDAS-CRP

1.9 (1.0)

2.3 (0.9)

1.8 (1.0)

0.016

2.0 (0.9)

2.1 (0.9)

1.7 (1.0)

0.029

0.756

Paingroup, n (%) NCP

CRP

CWP

27 (25)

35 (32) 45 (42)

2 (6)

9 (25)

25 (69)

25 (35)

26 (37)

20 (28)

≤0.001*

20 (17)

35 (30)

61 (53)

10 (13)

25 (32)

44 (56)

10 (27)

10 (27)

17 (46)

0.161*

0.212*

Pain regions, no

4.4 ( 4.0)

7.1 (3.9)

3.1 (3.5)

≤0.001

5.6 (4.3)

6.1 (4.2)

4.4 (4.3)

0.044

0.039

Pain threshold

32.0 (16.6)

27.9 (15.3)

34.1 (17.0)

0.101

29.5 (12.2)

27.3 (11.5)

34.8 (12.4)

0.007

0.247

Pain tolerance

64.6 (28.2)

55.3 (28.0)

69.3 (27.3)

0.028

60.4 (24.3)

56.4 (22.1)

70.2 (26.8)

0.012

0.293

TSI

0.72 (0.52)

0.78 (0.52)

0.68 (0.52)

0.431

0.60 (0.52)

0.58 (0.56)

0.65 (0.42)

0.565

0.148

Pain, 0-100

33 (27)

49 (26)

26 (25)

≤0.001

39 (27)

42 (27)

32 (27)

0.069

0.138

Pain > 40 mm, n (%)

40 (37)

22 (61)

18 (24)

≤0.001

55 (48)

40 (51)

15 (41)

0.372

0.104

Fatigue, 0-100

36 (27)

54 (24)

28 (24)

≤0.001

42 (30)

44 (30)

38 (30)

0.268

0.127

Global health

34 (26)

46 (26)

28 (24)

0.001

38 (26)

41 (26)

31 (27)

0.069

0.241

EQ-5D

0.72 (0.23)

0.62 (0.28)

0.77 (0.19)

0.001

0.65 (29)

0.63 (0.29)

0.71 (0.29)

0.192

0.069

HADS anxiety

depression

5.3 (3.8)

4.2 (3.1)

5.4 (4.3)

4.5 (3.8)

5.2 (3.5)

4.0 (2.8)

0.843

0.465

6.2 (3.9)

4.5 (3.4)

6.3 (4.1)

4.2 (3.3)

5.9 (3.5)

4.9 (3.6)

0.600

0.300

0.083

0.491

BASDAI

3.1 (2.3)

4.5 (2.0)

2.4 (2.2)

≤0.001

3.8 (2.3)

4.1 (2.2)

3.1 (2.3)

0.043

0.032

BASFI

2.4 (2.4)

3.2 (2.3)

2.0 (2.4)

0.016

2.5 (2.3)

2.8 (2.4)

1.9 (2.1)

0.054

0.704

BASMI

3.6 (1.8)

3.0 (1.2)

3.9 (1.9)

0.014

2.5 (1.1)

2.5 (1.1)

2.4 (1.2)

0.903

≤0.001

MASES

4.0 (3.8)

6.2 (3.6)

3.0 (3.4)

≤0.001

6.1 (3.8)

7.2 (3.6)

3.7 (3.1)

≤0.001

≤0.001

Smoking, n (%) ever

never

51 (47)

57 (53)

14 (39)

22 (61)

37 (50)

35 (47)

0.220*

45 (39)

71 (61)

29 (37)

50 (63)

16 (43)

21 (49)

0.501*

0.203*

BMI, n (%) 18.5-24.9

25-29.9

>30

40 (37)

41 (38)

28 (26)

16 (44)

9 (25)

10 (28)

24 (32)

32 (43)

18 (24)

0.197*

48 (44)

34 (31)

28 (26)

35 (44)

20 (25)

20 (25)

13 (35)

14 (38)

8 (22)

0.367

0.503*

Ongoing treatment, csDMARDs, n (%)

23 (21)

12 (33)

11 (15)

0.025

27 (23)

22 (28)

5 (14)

0.089

0.668

bDMARDs, n (%)

48 (44)

15 (42)

33 (45)

0.771

53 (46)

35 (44)

18 (49)

0.662

0.756

Glucocorticoids, n (%)

9 (8)

1 (3)

8 (11)

0.144

14 (12)

10 (13)

4 (11)

0.776

0.346

Presented with mean and standard deviation (SD) unless otherwise indicated,

*for all


Disclosure: E. Mogard, None; T. Olofsson, None; S. Bergman, None; A. Bremander, None; L. E. Kristensen, AbbVie, Amgen, Biogen, Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS), Celgene, Eli Lilly, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD), Novartis, Pfizer, Roche, Sannofi and UCB Pharma, 5, 8; J. Kvistgaard Olsen, None; J. K. Wallman, AbbVie, Celgene, Eli Lilly, Novartis and UCB Pharma, 5; E. Lindqvist, None.

To cite this abstract in AMA style:

Mogard E, Olofsson T, Bergman S, Bremander A, Kristensen LE, Kvistgaard Olsen J, Wallman JK, Lindqvist E. Chronic Pain and Assessment of Pain Sensitivity in Patients with Established Axial Spondyloarthritis – a Cross-Sectional Study [abstract]. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2018; 70 (suppl 9). https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/chronic-pain-and-assessment-of-pain-sensitivity-in-patients-with-established-axial-spondyloarthritis-a-cross-sectional-study/. Accessed .
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