ABSTRACT

Objective:

The latest update of the ASAS-EULAR management recommendations for axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) has been released in 2016. We aimed to develop a national guideline by modifying the ASAS/EULAR recommendations under the auspices of Turkish Society for Rheumatology.

Methods:

The task force comprised twelve rheumatologists who are members of Turkish Society for Rheumatology. The Oxford Centre for Evidence Based Medicine system had been used for determining the levels of evidence and grades of recommendation in the ASAS/EULAR recommendations. For the recommendations that we changed based on expert opinion, we changed the level of evidence to «5» and grade of recommendation to «D». Each recommendation was accepted after being voted affirmatively by at least 70% of the task force.

Results:

Among the 5 overarching principles, the first, fourth and fifth principles have been modified. We have also developed two new principles. Among the 13 treatment recommendations, all but the first, tenth and eleventh have been modified. The ninth and thirteenth treatment recommendations have been combined. Overall, a total of 7 "overarching principles" and 12 "recommendations" were formulated.

Conclusion:

Our recommendations is intended to assist clinicians dealing with patients with axSpA in their daily practice. However, this guideline will need to be updated as new data is collected on the efficacy of existing agents for preventing structural damage and on their long-term safety as well as studies with new agents.