The role of fibrinogen to albumin ratio in ankylosing spondylitis: Correlation with disease activity.

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to assess the role of fibrinogen (Fib) to albumin (ALB) ratio (FAR) in ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and its association with disease activity.

METHODS

135 AS patients and 76 age - and gender - matched healthy controls were collected in this retrospective study. Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI) score was used to divide the AS patients into remission group (BASDAI < 4) and active group (BASDAI ≥ 4). The association between FAR and BASDAI was evaluated by Spearman correlation. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was made to determine the area under curve (AUC) value. The prognostic value of FAR in the AS disease activity was tested by multivariate logistical regression analyses.

RESULTS

AS patients showed higher FAR levels than the controls (P < 0.001). FAR was also increased in active group of AS patients than those in inactive group (P < 0.001). Spearman analyses showed that FAR was positively related with BASDAI (r = 0.594, P < 0.001) in AS patients. ROC curve analyses revealed that the AUC of FAR was higher than ALB and Fib. In addition, the optimal cutoff value of FAR for AS diagnosis was 78.84, with a specificity of 88.2% and sensitivity of 77.0%. Logistical regression analyses showed that FAR (odds ratio = 13.091, 95% confidence interval: 4.686-36.571, P < 0.001) was a predictor for AS disease activity.

CONCLUSIONS

FAR was increased in AS and may act as a novel inflammatory parameter for mirroring disease activity in AS.