Obesity appears to be prevalent among patients with axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) compared to the general population, according to a Swiss study, noting that socially disadvantaged individuals are most affected by this comorbidity.
Investigators conducted this repeated cross-sectional study to compare body mass index (BMI) groups of patients with axSpA to the Swiss population at three timepoints (ie, 2007, 2012, and 2017). They used the chi-square goodness of fit test to compare BMI categories by age, sex, and education, and unpaired one-sided t tests to compare BMI in axSpA patients between different timepoints.
The proportion of overweight and obesity was higher in patients with axSpA than in the general population (18.9 percent vs 11.3 percent). Likewise, comparisons of BMI categories within sex, age, and education groups consistently demonstrated a trend toward higher overweight and obesity rates in the axSpA cohort.
Over the 10-year study period, a trend of increasing BMI was observed among axSpA patients, particularly among females. At each time point, however, overweight and obese patients tended to be older, male, and have greater disease activity than those with normal weight.
Of note, obesity showed a significant association with a deprived economic status as indicated by a higher proportion of patients with manual labour jobs and lower education levels.
“There is an urgent need to initiate prevention strategies for obesity in patients with axSpA,” the investigators said.