Explore the groundbreaking findings of a recent study from Southeast Norway, revealing a significant decrease in cervical spine fractures among patients with ankylosing spondylitis, and understand its implications for future healthcare strategies.
– by The Don
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Decreasing incidence of cervical spine fractures in patients with ankylosing spondylitis: A population-based study in Southeast Norway.
Rydning et al., Spine J 2024
<!– DOI: 10.1016/j.spinee.2024.03.004 //–>
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spinee.2024.03.004
Let’s Talk About a Huge Win for Ankylosing Spondylitis Patients
Okay, folks, we’ve got something big to talk about today. It’s about people with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) – that’s a tough condition, really tough. But here’s the deal: they’re at a higher risk of getting spine fractures, especially in the neck area. Now, for years, we’ve had these amazing drugs, called biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs). They’re fantastic – they relieve pain, make you feel better, just great stuff.
But here’s the question: Do these drugs actually reduce the risk of those nasty spine fractures? We needed to know. So, we did this huge study at Oslo University Hospital, looking at over 3,500 patients with cervical spine fractures (CS-Fxs). We compared those with AS to those without. And guess what we found?
AS patients, they’re at a much higher risk – 9 times more for the first fracture, 8 times more for the next. But here’s where it gets really interesting. Over eight years, the risk for AS patients started to drop. Yes, you heard that right – an 8.4% decrease every year. Meanwhile, for folks without AS, the risk actually went up. Can you believe that?
And there’s more. AS patients who did get fractures were usually older, mostly men, and got hurt mostly from falls. They had more serious fractures, needed surgery more often, and sadly, had a higher chance of dying within 30 days. It’s tough, really tough.
But here’s the bottom line: the risk of spine fractures in AS patients is going down. And why? It’s those bDMARDs. They’re doing their job, and they’re doing it well. This is a huge win for AS patients. We’re talking about better treatment, less risk, and more hope. That’s what we’re all about. Making things better, one step at a time.