Assessment Tools for Pulmonary Involvement in Patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis: Is Diaphragmatic Ultrasonography Correlated to Spirometry?

Objective: Spondyloarthritis (SpA) is a chronic inflammatory rheumatic disease that can lead to spinal ankylosis and consequently, restrictive pulmonary dysfunction. Thus, the present study aimed to assess the accuracy of diaphragm ultrasound compared to spirometry in the screening of restrictive pulmonary disorders in radiographic SpA patients.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 50 patients with radiographic SpA, over six months.