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Early axial spondyloarthritis diagnosis linked to lower long-term spinal damage

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Early axial spondyloarthritis diagnosis linked to lower long-term spinal damage

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Early axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA), with a duration of no more than two years of axial symptoms, is associated with lower long-term spinal structural damage, according to a study published online Sept. 18 in Arthritis & Rheumatology.

Annik Steimer, M.D., from Zurich University Hospital, and colleagues compared spinal radiographic progression between patients with early and established axSpA followed under standard-of-care treatment in a large Swiss cohort. Patients with axSpA who had at least two sets of spinal radiographs between 2004 and 2024 were scored with the modified Stoke Ankylosing Spondylitis Spinal Score (mSASSS).

Of the 376 patients with 1,181 sets of radiographs, 138 and 238 had early and established axSpA, respectively. The two groups had similar baseline characteristics. The researchers found that patients with early axSpA had lower long-term mSASSS compared with those with established axSpA (−3.85 mSASSS units). At 10 to 15 years after diagnosis, this difference became evident. After adjustment for baseline radiographic damage, the results remained significant (−5.70 mSASSS units).

"This is the first study demonstrating long-term benefits of an early diagnosis in axSpA and therefore providing evidence to support efforts to diagnose patients with axSpA early," the authors write.

, Early Diagnosis of Axial Spondyloarthritis Is Associated With Less Long‐Term Spinal Structural Damage: A Longitudinal Analysis of the Swiss Clinical Quality Management in Rheumatic Diseases Registry, Arthritis & Rheumatology (2026).



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