Evaluation of the relationship between respiratory function tests, disease activity indexs, chest expansion diameter and quality of life in patients with ankylosing spondilitis

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a rheumatic disease with an unclear cause that mostly affects the sacroiliac joints, axial skeleton, and peripheral joints. The intervertebral, costovertebral, costosternal, sternoclavicular, costotransversal, and manubriosternal joints all become rigid in AS, with enthesitis at the enthesis points adjacent to these joints and ankylosis of these joints later on. Restrictive type respiratory dysfunction arises as a result of decreased chest expansion in pulmonary function testing (PFT) assessments for various causes. The focus of the present study was to see if there is a link between respiratory function, disease activity indicators, chest expansion diameter, and quality of life in ankylosing spondylitis patients. The study comprised 61 patients, with 19 females (31.1%) and 42 males (68.9%) meeting the ASAS criteria for Spondyloarthropathy among those diagnosed with Ankylosing Spondylitis using the Modified New York diagnostic criteria. In the 61 individuals who were admitted into the study, SFT was performed on 40 (65.6%) of them. Patients' BMI, gender, age, education level, marital status, and occupation were all documented, as well as their smoking and alcohol use histories, disease duration, presence of systemic disease, drug usage (NSAID, DMARD, and anti-TNF-α use), CRP and ESH levels, and HLA-B27 results. The Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI) and Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Score (ASDAS) were used to determine the patients' disease activity, while the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI) was used to assess physical function.The Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI) and Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Score (ASDAS) were used to assessthe disease activity of the patients, while the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI) was used to evaluate physical function, the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Mobility Index (BASMI) and the Ankylosing Spondylitis Mobility Index were used to evaluate axial mobility chest expansion values, the Ankylosing Spondylitis Quality of Life Questionnaire (ASQoL) was used to evaluate quality of life, and the dynamic pulmonary function test (SFT) values measured using the ndd Medical Technologies Easy on-PC Spirometer (Zurich,Switzerland) device were used to evaluate respiratory functions. Chest expansion was restricted in 32.8 percent of the patients in the present study, with 10.0 percent of female patients and 90 percent of male patients having restricted chest expansion. In PFT exams, restrictive type respiratory dysfunction was found in 27.5 percent of patients, with 45.4 percent of those with restrictive type disorder being female and 54.6 percent being male. Restricted chest expansion was detected in 50% of patients with restrictive type respiratory dysfunction, while normal chest expansion was reported in 17.9% of patients with restrictive type respiratory dysfunction. While chest expansion was inhibited at a rate of 54.5 percent in those with restrictive respiratory dysfunction, it was restricted at a rate of 20.7 percent in those with normal respiratory function. Patients with restrictive respiratory dysfunction had a considerably higher BASDAI score than those without, and those with restricted chest expansion had a significantly higher BASDAI score than those with normal chest expansion. Furthermore, it was discovered that the individuals with restrictive respiratory dysfunction and those with restricted chest expansion had a lower quality of life. In conclusion, pulmonary function tests may reveal restrictive respiratory failure as a result of limited chest expansion in the ankylosing spondylitis disease. Physical examination, disease activity indices, and pulmonary function test measurements should all be examined together when evaluating respiratory functions in patients, and treatment plans should be devised and followed up on while evaluating the patient's quality of life.