Long-Term Exercise Boosts Functional Ability in AxSpA

TOPLINE:

Long-term, supervised exercise therapy significantly improves the functional ability and quality of life in patients with axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) and severe functional limitations.

METHODOLOGY:

• This 52-week study evaluated the effectiveness of personalized exercise therapy in adults with axSpA and severe functional limitations.
• Overall, 214 participants were randomly allocated to either a personalized exercise therapy regimen or usual care for 52 weeks.
• The supervised exercise therapy regimen consisted of various exercises, patient education, goal setting, and physical activity promotion for up to 64 sessions.
• The primary endpoint was a change in the highest-ranked Patient-Specific Complaints Numeric Rating Scale (PSC1) score at 52 weeks, and secondary endpoints included measures of physical functioning and quality of life.

TAKEAWAY:

• At 52 weeks, the exercise group showed a greater improvement in the primary outcome measure (PSC1) than the usual care group, with a mean difference of −1.8 (95% CI, −2.4 to −1.2).
• Exercise therapy led to significant improvements in functional disability and physical quality of life.
• No serious adverse events related to the intervention were reported, highlighting the safety of exercise therapy.

IN PRACTICE:

"If guided by a trained physical therapist applying a personalized approach, people with severe functional limitations due to an unfavorable course or comorbidities can be just as responsive to training as people with axSpA without severe limitations," the authors wrote.

SOURCE:

The study was led by Maria A.T. van Wissen, Department of Orthopaedics, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands, and published online on June 8 in Rheumatology.

LIMITATIONS:

The study's reliance on self-reported data for axSpA treatment-related medication may have compromised accuracy. Additionally, the lack of information on medication changes during the study period could affect result interpretation.

DISCLOSURES:

The study was supported by grants from the Netherlands Organization for Health Research and Development; Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport; Royal Dutch Society for Physical Therapy; and Dutch Arthritis Society. The authors declared no conflicts of interest.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.