Axial Spondyloarthritis (axSpA) is a type of inflammatory arthritis that predominantly affects the axial skeleton causing chronic pain. In the UK, an estimated 220,000 people live with axSpA and data on thousands of patients have been collected to provide information on the effects of different prescribed treatments. These measurements carry with them further key insights into the nature of the disease progression independent of treatment, where patient heterogeneity is also present. The collective responses have been collated by Bath Royal University Hospital, providing a rich dataset to mine for patterns that so far may have gone undetected.

In this project, the IMI analysed data from 548 patients who had not undergone drug-based biologic treatments and for whom the BASMI (Bath Axial Spondyloarthritis Metrology Index), a standardised measure of disease severity, was available. We used high-dimensional clustering techniques to identify meaningful patient subgroups based on trends in their data. The results provided insights that can be used to inform clinical decision-making and support the development of personalised treatment plans with the aim of improving patient outcomes.

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