SavedAdd your journal

Journals / Hacettepe Üniversitesi Sağlık Bilimleri Fakültesi Dergisi / 2026 / Volume: 13 Issue: 2

Does central sensitization affect disease severity and spinal mobility in axial spondyloarthritis?

Janan Hosseinzadgan(istanbul atlas üniversitesi)0009-0008-3187-2449
Nazli Busra Cigercioglu(SELÇUK ÜNİVERSİTESİ)0000-0001-5912-4196
Yaşar Gül Baltaci(İstanbul Atlas Üniversitesi)0000-0002-6513-2499
Pages
—
Publication Date
2026-08-28
🏛️Bibliographic metadata and full text access for this article are provided via DergiPark.
DergiPark Record ↗
✨

AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

These findings highlight the importance of considering central pain mechanisms beyond inflammatory indicators in disease assessment and emphasize the role of multidisciplinary, biopsychosocial-based rehabilitation approaches in clinical management.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

🎯
Objective & Hypothesis:Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships between central sensitization and disease activity, functional status, and spinal mobility in individuals with axial spondyloarthritis, and to elucidate the role of central pain mechanisms in the clinical presentation.
📊
Key Findings & Data:Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional observational study included 30 individuals aged 18–65 years diagnosed with axial spondyloarthritis.
💡
Conclusion & Impact:These findings highlight the importance of considering central pain mechanisms beyond inflammatory indicators in disease assessment and emphasize the role of multidisciplinary, biopsychosocial-based rehabilitation approaches in clinical management.
🔬Design:Research Article
📍Scope:Comprehensive Sample
⚙️Variables:axial spondyloarthritis · central sensitization · spinal mobility

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships between central sensitization and disease activity, functional status, and spinal mobility in individuals with axial spondyloarthritis, and to elucidate the role of central pain mechanisms in the clinical presentation. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional observational study included 30 individuals aged 18–65 years diagnosed with axial spondyloarthritis. Disease activity was assessed using the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), functional status with the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI), spinal mobility with the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Metrology Index (BASMI), central sensitization with the Central Sensitization Inventory (CSI), and pain catastrophizing with the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS). Relationships between variables were analyzed using Spearman correlation analysis (p 0.05). Pain catastrophizing was not significantly associated with either clinical parameters or central sensitization. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that central sensitization in axial spondyloarthritis is particularly associated with functional limitation and spinal mobility, but may not parallel disease activity. These findings highlight the importance of considering central pain mechanisms beyond inflammatory indicators in disease assessment and emphasize the role of multidisciplinary, biopsychosocial-based rehabilitation approaches in clinical management.

🔖

Cite This Article

Hosseinzadgan, J., Cigercioglu, N. B., Baltaci, Y. G. (2026). Does central sensitization affect disease severity and spinal mobility in axial spondyloarthritis?. Hacettepe Üniversitesi Sağlık Bilimleri Fakültesi Dergisi, Volume: 13 Issue: 2. https://doi.org/10.21020/husbfd.1900422

📄 Full Text PDF Viewer

📄

PDF görüntüleyici hazırlanıyor...

References (29)

  1. Adami, G., Gerratana, E., Atzeni, F., Benini, C., Vantaggiato, E., Rotta, D., Idolazzi, L., Rossini, M., Gatti, D., & Fassio, A. (2021). Is central sensitization an important determinant of functional disability in patients with chronic inflammatory arthritides? Therapeutic Advances in Musculoskeletal Disease, 13, 1759720x21993252. https://doi.org/10.1177/1759720x21993252
  2. Akkoc, Y., Karatepe, A. G., Akar, S., Kirazli, Y., & Akkoc, N. (2005, May). A Turkish version of the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index: reliability and validity. Rheumatology International, 25(4), 280-284. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-003-0432-y
  3. Apaydın, H., & Bazancir Apaydın, Z. (2023, September). The role of disease activity as a determinant of body awareness and central sensitization in patients with axial spondyloarthritis: a cross-sectional study. Journal of Health Sciences and Medicine, 6(5), 1022-1028. https://doi.org/10.32322/jhsm.1345463
  4. Appel, H., Rudwaleit, M., & Sieper, J. (2008, Nov). Relevance of osteoproliferation as an outcome parameter in ankylosing spondylitis. Nature Clinical Practice Rheumatology 4(11), 578-579. https://doi.org/10.1038/ncprheum0930
  5. Ashrafi, M., Ermann, J., & Weisman, M. H. (2020, Jul). Spondyloarthritis evolution: what is in your history? Current Opinion in Rheumatology, 32(4), 321-329. https://doi.org/10.1097/bor.0000000000000712
  6. Assessing Quality Of Life In Clinical Trials: Methods and Practice. (2005). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780198527695.001.0001
  7. Aykurt Karlıbel, I., & Kasapoğlu Aksoy, M. (2023, Feb). The relationship between central sensitization and disease activity, quality of life, and sleep quality among patients with axial spondyloarthritis. Irish Journal of Medical Science, 192(1), 481-489. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11845-022-02957-4
  8. Bailly, F., Cantagrel, A., Bertin, P., Perrot, S., Thomas, T., Lansaman, T., Grange, L., Wendling, D., Dovico, C., & Trouvin, A. P. (2020, Sep). Part of pain labelled neuropathic in rheumatic disease might be rather nociplastic. RMD Open, 6(2). https://doi.org/10.1136/rmdopen-2020-001326
  9. Bazancir-Apaydin, Z., & Sari, F. (2024, Jun 1). Psychometric properties of the Turkish version of Central Sensitization Inventory-9 in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain. International Journal of Rehabilitation Research 47(2), 122-128. https://doi.org/10.1097/mrr.0000000000000617
  10. Ben Tekaya, A., Ben Said, H., Yousfi, I., Ben Dhia, S., Bouden, S., Rouached, L., Mahmoud, I., Tekaya, R., Saidane, O., & Abdelmoula, L. (2024). Burden of disease, pain catastrophizing, and central sensitization in relation to work-related issues in young spondyloarthritis patients. Reumatologia, 62(1), 35-42. https://doi.org/10.5114/reum/185390
  11. Bushnell, M. C., Ceko, M., & Low, L. A. (2013, Jul). Cognitive and emotional control of pain and its disruption in chronic pain Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 14(7), 502-511. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn3516
  12. Cawley, M. I., Chalmers, T. M., Kellgren, J. H., & Ball, J. (1972, Sep). Destructive lesions of vertebral bodies in ankylosing spondylitis Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases31(5), 345-358. https://doi.org/10.1136/ard.31.5.345
  13. Cigercioglu, N., Bazancir-Apaydin, Z., Baltaci, G., Kalyoncu, U., & Guney-Deniz, H. (2025, 2025/12/01). Comparison of plantar pressure distribution patterns of patients with ankylosing spondylitis and asymptomatic healthy individuals: a cross-sectional study. Irish Journal of Medical Science (1971 -), 194(6), 2201-2209. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11845-025-04064-6
  14. Dougados, M., & Baeten, D. (2011, Jun 18). Spondyloarthritis. Lancet, 377(9783), 2127-2137. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(11)60071-8
  15. Düzce Keleş, E., Birtane, M., Ekuklu, G., Kılınçer, C., Çalıyurt, O., Taştekin, N., Is, E. E., Ketenci, A., & Neblett, R. (2021, Dec). Validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the central sensitization inventory. Archives of Rheumatology 36(4), 518-526. https://doi.org/10.46497/ArchRheumatol.2022.8665
  16. Kataria, R. K., & Brent, L. H. (2004, Jun 15). Spondyloarthropathies. American Family Physician, 69(12), 2853-2860.
  17. Kieskamp, S. C., van der Kraan, Y., Arends, S., Wink, F., Bos, R., Stewart, R., Paap, D., & Spoorenberg, A. (2025, Jun 1). Interrelationships of disease activity, central sensitization, psychosocial and lifestyle factors in axial spondyloarthritis. Rheumatology (Oxford), 64(6), 3547-3555. https://doi.org/10.1093/rheumatology/keaf102
  18. Latremoliere, A., & Woolf, C. J. (2009, Sep). Central sensitization: a generator of pain hypersensitivity by central neural plasticity The Journal of Pain, 10(9), 895-926. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpain.2009.06.012
  19. Navarro-Compán, V., Sepriano, A., Capelusnik, D., & Baraliakos, X. (2025). Axial spondyloarthritis. The Lancet, 405(10473), 159-172. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(24)02263-3
  20. Ronneberger, M., & Schett, G. (2011, Oct). Pathophysiology of spondyloarthritis. Current Rheumatology Reports, 13(5), 416-420. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11926-011-0202-x
  21. Salaffi, F., Farah, S., Bianchi, B., & Di Carlo, M. (2024, Feb 1). Central Sensitization in Psoriatic Arthritis: Relationship With Composite Measures of Disease Activity, Functional Disability, and Health-Related Quality of Life The Journal of Rheumatology, 51(2), 144-149. https://doi.org/10.3899/jrheum.2023-0177
  22. Sariyildiz, A., Coskun Benlidayi, I., Turk, I., Zengin Acemoglu, S. S., & Unal, I. (2023, May). Biopsychosocial factors should be considered when evaluating central sensitization in axial spondyloarthritis. Rheumatology International, 43(5), 923-932. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-023-05317-2
  23. Sieper, J., Rudwaleit, M., Baraliakos, X., Brandt, J., Braun, J., Burgos-Vargas, R., Dougados, M., Hermann, K. G., Landewé, R., Maksymowych, W., & van der Heijde, D. (2009, Jun). The Assessment of SpondyloArthritis international Society (ASAS) handbook: a guide to assess spondyloarthritis. Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, 68 Suppl 2, ii1-44. https://doi.org/10.1136/ard.2008.104018
  24. Şaş, S., Cengiz, G., & Kaplan, H. (2023, Jul 1). The effect of central sensitization on disease activity measures, quality of life and clinical parameters in axial spondyloarthritis: a cross-sectional study Journal of Rheumatic Diseases 30(3), 176-184. https://doi.org/10.4078/jrd.2023.0009
  25. Ugurlu, M., Karakas Ugurlu, G., Erten, S., & Caykoylu, A. (2021, 02/10). Validity of Turkish form of Pain Catastrophizing Scale and modeling of the relationship between pain-related disability with pain intensity, cognitive, and emotional factors. Psychiatry and Clinical Psychopharmacology, 27(2), 189-196. https://doi.org/10.1080/24750573.2017.1322672
  26. Vlaeyen, J. W. S., & Linton, S. J. (2000, Apr). Fear-avoidance and its consequences in chronic musculoskeletal pain: a state of the art. Pain, 85(3), 317-332. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0304-3959(99)00242-0
  27. Wheeler, C. H. B., Williams, A. C. C., & Morley, S. J. (2019, Sep). Meta-analysis of the psychometric properties of the Pain Catastrophizing Scale and associations with participant characteristics. Pain, 160(9), 1946-1953. https://doi.org/10.1097/j.pain.0000000000001494
  28. Woolf, C. J. (2011, Mar). Central sensitization: implications for the diagnosis and treatment of pain. Pain, 152(3 Suppl), S2-s15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pain.2010.09.030
  29. Yanik, B., Gürsel, Y. K., Kutlay, S., Ay, S., & Elhan, A. H. (2005, Feb). Adaptation of the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index to the Turkish population, its reliability and validity: functional assessment in AS. Clinical Rheumatology, 24(1), 41-47. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10067-004-0968-6