Actigraphy-derived physical activity levels and circadian rhythm parameters in patients with psoriatic arthritis: relationship with disease activity, mood, age and BMI.

Background: Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is associated with sleep disturbance, depression and a lifetime risk of obesity and cardiovascular disease. To date, there have been no studies investigating the relationship between objectively-measured physical activity (PA) levels and circadian rhythm disturbance with disease activity, daily symptoms and mood in patients with PsA.

Objective: This pilot study aimed to investigate the relationship between disease activity, daily symptoms and mood on PA and circadian rhythm in PsA.

Design: A prospective cohort study recruiting adults with PsA from rheumatology clinics at a single centre in the UK.

Methods: Participants wore an actigraph and recorded their symptoms and mood on a daily basis via a smartphone app for 28 days. Time spent in sedentary, light and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and parameters reflecting the circadian rhythm of the rest-activity pattern were derived. This included the onset time of the least active 5-h (L5) and most active 10-h (M10) daily consecutive periods and the relative amplitude (RA). The relationship factors between baseline clinical status, daily symptoms, PA and circadian measures were examined using linear mixed effect regression models.

Results: Nineteen participants (8/19 female) were included. Participants with active PsA spent 63.87 min (95% CI: 18.5-109.3,  = 0.008) more in inactivity and 30.78 min (95% CI: 0.4-61.1,  = 0.047) less in MVPA per day compared to those in minimal disease activity (MDA). Age, body mass index and disease duration were also associated with PA duration. Participants with worse functional impairment had an M10 onset time 1.94 h (95% CI: 0.05-3.39,  = 0.011) later than those with no reported functional impairment. No differences were detected for L5 onset time or RA. Higher scores for positive mood components such as feeling energetic, cheerful and elated were associated with less time in inactivity and greater time spent in MVPA overall.

Conclusion: Our study highlights differences in PA and circadian rest-activity pattern timing based on disease activity, disability and daily mood in PsA. Reduced PA levels in patients with active disease may contribute to the observed increased risk of cardiovascular and metabolic sequelae, with further studies exploring this need.