Vol. 7, Issue 1, Part A (2025)

Background: Spondyloarthritis comprises inflammatory rheumatic diseases affecting the spine and joints. Despite medical advancements, patients face medication-related challenges, impacting their quality of life. The multifaceted treatment necessitates addressing these burdens for optimal outcomes and improved well-being. The study aims to assess medication-related burden in spondyloarthritis Iraqi patients and explore its potential correlation with overall disease activity.

Patients and Methods: this cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted from March to July, 2023 at Baghdad teaching hospital, involving 100 patients with a diagnosis of spondyloarthritis. Information on demographics, disease characteristics, and disease activity were collected. The study assessed the medication-related burden using The Living with Medicines Questionnaire (LMQ). Additionally, self-reported adherence to medications was measured using the Adherence to Refills and Medications Scale (ARMS).

Results: the mean age of the patients was 40.3±10.2 years, were predominantly males (78%) and married (83%). Ankylosing spondylitis (86%) was the prevalent subtype, with a median disease duration of 5 years. The patients had an overall LMQ score of 69.7±11.7 which indicated no (74%) to minimum (24%) burden in relation to medication use. This was also true for the LMQ score which showed positive correlations with BASDAI (R=0.2, p-value=0.04), especially in medication effectiveness. Furthermore, ARMS scores were positively correlated with medication-related burden (r=0.5, p<0.001).

Conclusion: the study revealed minimum medication burden in patients afflicted with spondyloarthritis. The majority of patients-maintained adherence to prescribed medicines. Positive correlations were identified between medication burden and both disease activity and adherence to medications.