THU0383 GENDER DIFFERENCES IN NONRADIOGRAPHIC AXIAL SPONDYLOARTHRITIS: FROM CLINICAL CHARACTERISTICS TO EFFECTIVENESS OF TNF INHIBITORS

Background: Obesity population are rising rapidly and have become a major health issue. Studies have shown that obesity is a low-grade inflammatory status characterized by increase in proinflammatory cytokines. Objectives: To examine the impact of overweight or obesity on disease activity and treatment responses to biologics in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) in a real-world setting. Methods: Body mass index (BMI) is available in 1013 patients from the Chinese Ankylosing Spondylitis Imaging Cohort (CASPIC). Differences in clinical outcomes (such as BASDAI, ASDAS, BASFI, and ASAS HI) and treatment responses to biologics (ΔBASDAI and ΔASDAS) over 3, 6, 9, and 12 months are assessed between BMI categories (normal weight BMI Results: Among 1013 patients with AS, overweight accounts for 33%, while obesity for 12.4%. There were significant differences between patients who were obese or overweight and those with a normal weight regarding clinical outcomes (BASDAI: 2.90/2.56 vs 2.21; ASDAS-CRP: 2.20/1.99 vs 1.81; BASFI: 2.13/1.69 vs 1.38; ASAS HI: 6.87/5.29 vs 5.12 and BASMI: 2.35/1.76 vs 1.62; all P Conclusion: Overweight or obesity impacts greatly on clinical outcomes and treatment responses to biologics in patients with ankylosing spondylitis, which argues strongly for obesity management to become central to prevention and treatment strategies in patients with AS. References: [1]Maachi M, Pieroni L, Bruckert E, et al. Systemic low-grade inflammation is related to both circulating and adipose tissue TNFalpha, leptin and IL-6 levels in obese women. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 2004;28:993–7. Acknowledgments: We appreciate the contribution of the present or former members of the CASPIC study group. Disclosure of Interests: None declared