The Rheumatologist
COVID-19 NewsACR Convergence
  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed
  • Home
  • Conditions
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis
    • SLE (Lupus)
    • Crystal Arthritis
      • Gout Resource Center
    • Spondyloarthritis
    • Osteoarthritis
    • Soft Tissue Pain
    • Scleroderma
    • Vasculitis
    • Systemic Inflammatory Syndromes
    • Guidelines
  • Resource Centers
    • Axial Spondyloarthritis Resource Center
    • Gout Resource Center
    • Psoriatic Arthritis Resource Center
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis Resource Center
    • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Resource Center
  • Drug Updates
    • Biologics & Biosimilars
    • DMARDs & Immunosuppressives
    • Topical Drugs
    • Analgesics
    • Safety
    • Pharma Co. News
  • Professional Topics
    • Ethics
    • Legal
    • Legislation & Advocacy
    • Career Development
      • Certification
      • Education & Training
    • Awards
    • Profiles
    • President’s Perspective
    • Rheuminations
    • Interprofessional Perspective
  • Practice Management
    • Billing/Coding
    • Quality Assurance/Improvement
    • Workforce
    • Facility
    • Patient Perspective
    • Electronic Health Records
    • Apps
    • Information Technology
    • From the College
    • Multimedia
      • Audio
      • Video
  • Resources
    • Issue Archives
    • ACR Convergence
      • Gout Resource Center
      • Axial Spondyloarthritis Resource Center
      • Psoriatic Arthritis
      • Abstracts
      • Meeting Reports
      • ACR Convergence Home
    • American College of Rheumatology
    • ACR ExamRheum
    • Research Reviews
    • ACR Journals
      • Arthritis & Rheumatology
      • Arthritis Care & Research
      • ACR Open Rheumatology
    • Rheumatology Image Library
    • Treatment Guidelines
    • Rheumatology Research Foundation
    • Events
  • About Us
    • Mission/Vision
    • Meet the Authors
    • Meet the Editors
    • Contribute to The Rheumatologist
    • Subscription
    • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Search
You are here: Home / Articles / Data Accumulate to Suggest HLA-B27 Status May Drive Axial Phenotype in SpA

Data Accumulate to Suggest HLA-B27 Status May Drive Axial Phenotype in SpA

May 20, 2022 • By Lara C. Pullen, PhD

  • Tweet
  • Email
Print-Friendly Version / Save PDF

Axial spondyloarthritis (SpA), an inflammatory disease of the spine and sacroiliac joints, causes new bone formation that may lead to total ankylosis of the spine. Laura C. Coates, MBChB, PhD, associate professor of rheumatology at the University of Oxford, U.K., and colleagues sought to describe the relationship between the presence of HLA-B27 and the radiographic phenotype of axial SpA. They found patients with axial SpA who were positive for HLA-B27 had more severe radiographic damage than patients who were negative for HLA-B27. These HLA-B27-positive individuals also had more marginal syndesmophytes and more frequent syndesmophyte symmetry than those who were negative for HLA-B27. The investigators published their findings in the June 2021 issue of Arthritis Care & Research.1

You Might Also Like
  • How Do Axial SpA & PsA with Axial Involvement Differ?
  • Researchers Explore HLA-B27’s Role in the Development of Spondylitis
  • Conformational Flexibility in HLA-B27 Provides Clues to Development of Ankylosing Spondylitis
Also By This Author
  • Latest Research on Cutaneous Vasculitis Diagnosis, Treatment

Study Design

The large international, observational, cross-sectional study included a mixed population of individuals with axial psoriatic arthritis (PsA; n=244) and ankylosing spondylitis (AS; n=198) from eight sites in Europe and North America. The investigators gathered basic demographic data, a recent patient-completed disease activity measure (the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index [BASDAI]) and a recent measure of C-reactive protein (CRP).

ad goes here:advert-1
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

One-quarter of the patients with PsA tested positive for HLA-B27, and three-quarters of the patients with AS were positive for HLA-B27. Patients who were HLA-B27 positive had a mean age of 49.1 ± 14.2 years, whereas patients who were HLA-B27 negative had a mean age of 53.8 ± 13.8 years. HLA-B27 positive patients were also more likely to be male (73%) than HLA-B27 negative patients (59%). HLA-B27 positive patients had disease duration of 13.6 ± 11.9 years, whereas HLA-B27 negative patients had a disease duration of 11.0 ± 10.2 years. Lastly, patients who were HLA-B27 positive had a mean BASDAI score of 4.1 ± 2.0 compared with a mean BASDAI score of 3.5 ± 2.4 for HLA-B27 negative patients. All of these differences were statistically significant.

 Study Results

Blinded to the clinical details, the investigators read the radiographs by consensus in a single, central location. They recorded the symmetry of the sacroiliac joints and lumbar syndesmophytes and the morphology of the syndesmophytes, together with the modified Stoke Ankylosing Spondylitis Spine Score (mSASSS) and the Psoriatic Arthritis Spondylitis Radiographic Index (PASRI). The mSASSS evaluates the corners of the vertebral bodies from the lower border of C2 to the upper border of T1 and from the lower border of T12 to the upper border of S1. The PASRI evaluates the vertebral bodies and the zygo-apophyseal joints at C2/C3, C3/C4 and C4/C5 for fusion. The PASRI also scores the sacroiliac joints.

ad goes here:advert-2
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Pages: 1 2 3 4 | Single Page

Filed Under: Conditions, Spondyloarthritis Tagged With: Arthritis Care & Research, AS Resource Center, Axial Psoriatic Arthritis (axPsA), axial spondyloarthritis (SpA), HLA-B27, phenotype, PsA Resource Center, Psoriatic Arthritis

You Might Also Like:
  • How Do Axial SpA & PsA with Axial Involvement Differ?
  • Researchers Explore HLA-B27’s Role in the Development of Spondylitis
  • Conformational Flexibility in HLA-B27 Provides Clues to Development of Ankylosing Spondylitis
  • Letters: UCLA Study on HLA-B27 Link with Ankylosing Spondylitis at Forefront

American College of Rheumatology

Visit the official website for the American College of Rheumatology.

Visit the ACR »

ACR Convergence

Don’t miss rheumatology’s premier scientific meeting for anyone involved in research or the delivery of rheumatologic care or services.

Visit the ACR Convergence site »

Rheumatology Research Foundation

The Foundation is the largest private funding source for rheumatology research and training in the U.S.

Learn more »

The Rheumatologist newsmagazine reports on issues and trends in the management and treatment of rheumatic diseases. The Rheumatologist reaches 11,500 rheumatologists, internists, orthopedic surgeons, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, and other healthcare professionals who practice, research, or teach in the field of rheumatology.

About Us / Contact Us / Advertise / Privacy Policy / Terms of Use / Cookie Preferences

  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed

Copyright © 2006–2023 American College of Rheumatology. All rights reserved.

ISSN 1931-3268 (print)
ISSN 1931-3209 (online)