What type of study is this?

This is a Cross-Sectional Study study.

What question did this study set out to answer?

To characterize early psoriatic arthritis patients based on body mass index and its impact on health outcomes.

April 30, 2026

P186 Elevated body mass index is associated with worse function, quality of life and more axial involvement in early psoriatic arthritis: results from the SpARRO cohort

Key Points

To characterize early psoriatic arthritis patients based on body mass index and its impact on health outcomes.
Conducted a cross-sectional analysis of the SpARRO cohort
Included patients newly diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis
Collected data on demographics, comorbidities, and clinical outcomes
Categorized BMI into normal, overweight, and obese groups
Performed statistical analyses using Kruskal-Wallis and Chi-squared tests.
The cohort included 234 psoriatic arthritis participants with a median BMI of 28.6 kg/m²
Higher BMI was linked to worse functional outcomes and quality of life scores
Higher prevalence of axial disease was observed in higher BMI categories
Increased morning stiffness duration was noted in patients with higher BMI.

Abstract

Abstract Background/Aims Obesity increases risk of psoriatic arthritis (PsA), disease severity and comorbidity burden, and reduces treatment response with recent reports showing the impact of weight loss interventions improving disease activity. With the scarce evidence available in PsA focused mainly on established disease, we aimed to characterise a newly diagnosed, early PsA population stratified by body mass index (BMI). Methods We used the Leeds Spondyloarthopathy Register for Research and Observation (SpARRO) cohort, a single-centre, prospective observational study recruiting since 2013. This cross-sectional analysis includes patients with a new diagnosis of PsA confirmed by a consultant rheumatologist. Data collected at baseline include demographics, comorbidities, medications, clinical data, disease activity, patient-reported outcomes and laboratory investigations aligned with routine NHS practice. For analysis, BMI was categorised as 25 kg/m², 25-29.9 kg/m² (overweight), and ≥30 kg/m² (obesity). Continuous data are presented as median (IQR) and categorical data as n (%), with comparisons by Kruskal-Wallis and Chi-squared. Statistical significance was set at p 0.05. Analyses were performed in STATA 17.0. Results Data from 234 PsA participants are reported (Table 1): 54.7% male, median age 43 years (IQR 34-53), 88.9% Caucasian, with a symptom duration of 1.33 years (median, IQR 0.67-2.50) and largely treatment-naïve (91.5% csDMARD-naïve, 100% bDMARD-naïve). Excess adiposity was highly prevalent, with a median BMI of 28.6 kg/m²; only 27.8% had a BMI 25 kg/m². Median joint symptom duration was longer in higher BMI categories (1.5 vs 1.0 years, p = 0.003). Axial disease (as classified by the clinician), was more prevalent with higher BMI (19.6% vs 4.6%, p = 0.016). Early morning stiffness was prolonged (median 60 vs 30 minutes, p = 0.001). Patient-reported outcomes were worse in higher BMI, notably: function (HAQ median 1.00 vs 0.38, p 0.001), quality of life (PsAQoL 10 vs 6, p = 0.039), and pain (63.5 vs 46, p = 0.007). Conclusion In this early PsA cohort an elevated BMI was associated with worse function, quality of life and pain, and a higher prevalence of axial disease. Studies looking at weight loss interventions in newly diagnosed, obese, PsA patients are needed. Disclosure J.C. Williams: None. J. Weddell: None. S.R. Harrison: None. K. Naraghi: None. J. Fitton: None. J. Freeston: None. G. De Marco: None. K. Meridor: None. D. McGonagle: None. A. Tan: None. P. Helliwell: None. S. Zhao: None. H. Marzo-Ortega: None.

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Cite This Study

Williams et al. (Wed,) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/69f2a49d8c0f03fd67763a69 https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1093/rheumatology/keag121.217

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