Impairment of Memory in Axial Spondyloarthritis?

Stefan Kleinert¹, Florian Schuch², Praxedis Rapp², Monika Ronneberger², Joerg Wendler², Patrizia Sternad³, Florian Popp³, Peter Bartz-Bazzanella⁴, Cay Von der Decken⁵, Kirsten Karberg⁶, Georg Gauler⁷, Patrick Wurth⁸, Susanna Späthling-Mestekemper⁹, Christoph Kuhn¹⁰, Mathias Englbrecht¹¹, Wolfgang Vorbrüggen¹², Georg Adler¹³ and Martin Welcker¹⁴, ¹Praxisgemeinschaft Rheumatologie - Nephrologie (PGRN), Erlangen, Germany, ²Praxisgemeinschaft Rheumatologie-Nephrologie, Erlangen, Germany, ³Medizinisches Versorgungszentrum für Rheumatologie Dr. M. Welcker GmbH, Planegg, Germany, ⁴Rhein-Maas Klinikum, Wuerselen, Germany, ⁵Klinik für Internistische Rheumatologie, Rhein-Maas-Klinikum, Würselen, Germany, ⁶Praxis für Rheumatologie und Innere Medizin, Berlin, Germany, Berlin, Germany, ⁷rheumapraxis, Osnabrck, Germany, ⁸Rheumatologische Schwerpunktpraxis, Osnabrück, Germany, ⁹Rheumapraxis München, München, Germany, ¹⁰Praxis für Rheumatologie, Karlsruhe, Germany, Karlsruhe, Germany, ¹¹Freelance Healthcare Data Scientist, Eckental, Germany., Eckental, Germany, ¹²Verein zur Förderung der Rheumatologie e.V., Würselen, Germany, ¹³Institut für Studien zur Psychischen Gesundheit (ISPG), Mannheim, Germany, ¹⁴MVZ für Rheumatologie, Planegg, Germany

Meeting: ACR Convergence 2021

Keywords: Cognitive dysfunction, Psoriatic arthritis, spondyloarthritis

Session Information

Date: Monday, November 8, 2021

Session Title: Spondyloarthritis Including PsA – Diagnosis, Manifestations, & Outcomes III: Comorbidities, Extra-muskuloskeletal Manifestations, & Related Conditions (1304–1328)

Session Type: Poster Session C

Session Time: 8:30AM-10:30AM

Background/Purpose: There is certain evidence that neuropsychiatric changes occur in systemic lupus(1) and rheumatoid arthritis (2). However, there is little knowledge about possible cognitive changes in axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA). The aim of this study ist to evaluate patients with axial spondyloarthritis regarding cognitive impairments.

Methods: 101 consecutive patients with axial spondyloarthritis attending two rheumatology practices were routinely evaluated by different rheumatologists and underwent a computer-based memory and attention test (MAT) described elsewhere (3, 4). The results of short-term memory and working memory were analyzed compared with an age-, sex- and education-matched control group of healthy subjects.

Results: Patients’ characteristics are displayed in table 1. Patients with axSpA revealed a decreased working memory (table 2) as analysed by Wilcoxon signed-rank test (table 3).

Conclusion: The MAT computerized testing is a highly feasible test and was well accepted by patients. It showed a clinically meaningful decrease in working memory in patients with axial spondyloarthritis. Further work-up is required to characterise possible causes or associations of this cognitive impairment.

Table 1: Patients’ characteristics.

Working Memory and short term memory test results. Patients with spondyloarthritis and an age-, sex, and education-matched controll group.

Wilcoxon signed-rank test revealed a clinically relevant and signficant difference in working memory between patients and controll group.

Disclosures: S. Kleinert, Novartis, 5, Abbvie, 1, Siemens Healthineers, 1, Sanofi, 11; F. Schuch, Abbvie, 1, 6, Novartis, 1, 6, Lilly, 1, Gilead, 1, 6; P. Rapp, None; M. Ronneberger, None; J. Wendler, Janssen Cilag, 1, 6, Roche Pharma, 1, 6; P. Sternad, None; F. Popp, None; P. Bartz-Bazzanella, None; C. Von der Decken, None; K. Karberg, None; G. Gauler, Lilly, 1, Abbvie, 1, 6, Gilead, 6, Novartis, 6; P. Wurth, None; S. Späthling-Mestekemper, None; C. Kuhn, None; M. Englbrecht, None; W. Vorbrüggen, None; G. Adler, None; M. Welcker, Abbvie, 2, 5, 6, Actelion, 5, Aescu, 6, Amgen, 6, Biogen, 6, BMS, 2, 6, Berlin Chemie, 6, Celgene, 2, Galapagos, 2, 5, Gilead, 2, 5, GSK, 2, 5, 6, Hexal, 5, 6, Janssen, 6, Medac, 2, 6, MSD, 6, Mundipharma, 6, Mylan, 2, 6, Novartis, 2, 5, 6, Pfizer, 2, 6, Riemser, 6, Sanofi, 2, 6, UCB, 2, 5, 6.

To cite this abstract in AMA style:

Kleinert S, Schuch F, Rapp P, Ronneberger M, Wendler J, Sternad P, Popp F, Bartz-Bazzanella P, Von der Decken C, Karberg K, Gauler G, Wurth P, Späthling-Mestekemper S, Kuhn C, Englbrecht M, Vorbrüggen W, Adler G, Welcker M. Impairment of Memory in Axial Spondyloarthritis? [abstract]. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2021; 73 (suppl 9). https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/impairment-of-memory-in-axial-spondyloarthritis/. Accessed January 30, 2023.

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