• Journal of muscle and joint health
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.141-154
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• 2019

Purpose: This study aimed to analyze the effects of exercise on pulmonary function in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Methods: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were identified by searching MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL, and CINAHL (through Jan 2019). Three reviewers independently retrieved articles, extracted data, and assessed methodological quality using the Cochrane's Risk of Bias for randomized studies. Results: Fourteen studies met the inclusion criteria with a total of 729 participants. CE (SMD 0.58, 95% CI 0.41~0.75, p<.001) and $VO_2peak$ (SMD 0.56, 95% CI 0.24~0.88, p=.001) had a significant effect on the most exercise interventions. As a secondary variable, BASFI (SMD -0.53, 95% CI -0.70~-0.37, p<.001), BASMI (SMD -0.75, 95% CI -0.92~-0.58, p<.001) showed an effect size of more than medium. However, PFT and QoL did not produce a significant results. Conclusion: Pulmonary involvement is common in patients with AS and might have disturbed functionality and exercise modality. Exercise can be an effective intervention to improve pulmonary function in patients with AS. More attention is needed to improve the chest and spinal mobility to maintain the appropriate pulmonary function. It is also necessary to consider how to construct a patient-tailored exercise program to increase performance, accuracy and safety of exercise.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.45 no.6
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• pp.365-375
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• 2022

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) may be important regulators in the progression of ankylosing spondylitis (AS). The competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) activity of lncRNAs plays crucial roles in osteogenesis. We identified the mechanism of the differentially expressed lncRNA MALAT1 in AS using bioinformatic analysis and its ceRNA mechanism. The interaction of MALAT1, microRNA-558, and GSDMD was identified using integrated bioinformatics analysis and validated. Loss- and gain-of-function assays evaluated their effects on the viability, apoptosis, pyroptosis and inflammation of chondrocytes in AS. We found elevated MALAT1 and GSDMD but reduced miR-558 in AS cartilage tissues and chondrocytes. MALAT1 contributed to the suppression of cell viability and facilitated apoptosis and pyroptosis in AS chondrocytes. GSDMD was a potential target gene of miR-558. Depletion of MALAT1 expression elevated miR-558 by inhibiting GSDMD to enhance cell viability and inhibit inflammation, apoptosis and pyroptosis of chondrocytes in AS. In summary, our key findings demonstrated that knockdown of MALAT1 served as a potential suppressor of AS by upregulating miR-558 via the downregulation of GSDMD expression.

• Journal of the Korean Orthopaedic Association
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• v.56 no.4
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• pp.294-304
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• 2021

Ankylosing spondylitis causes ankylosis of the spine due to ossification of the articular cartilage and ligaments around the vertebral body as well as the sacroiliac joint. This pathophysiology limits joint movement and, in many cases, causes pain and deformity of the spine. If this disease is left untreated, it ultimately causes ankylosis and ossification of the whole-body joints. The symptoms generally develop before age 30 years, and the gradual progression of the disease adversely affects the physical function, professional ability, and quality of life. This increases the likelihood of developing psychiatric disorders, such as depression. The authors are aware of this severity and introduce recent trends and studies to prevent surgical treatment with various medications before systemic ossification. This paper presents various surgical treatments and complications in patients who were unable to prevent progression and underwent surgical treatment.

• The Journal of the Korean life insurance medical association
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.19-28
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• 2012

Nowadays, Rheumatic diseases are increasing more and more. So, it's important knowing the pathophysiology and extra-risk of each rheumatic disease so as to do sound underwriting. Here is brief review and long-term prognosis of some rheumatic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, Sj$\ddot{o}$gren syndrome, antiphospholipid syndrome, systemic sclerosis, ankylosing spondylitis, Takayasu's arteritis, and Behcet syndrome.

• Korean Journal of Adult Nursing
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.560-572
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• 2000

This study was designed to offer descriptive data for nursing intervention for relief of fatigue and pain, and to distinguish by the characteristic difference and the symptoms such as fatigue and pain on Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS), Fibromyalgia(FM), and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus(SLE) patients. The sample consisted of 92 patients(AS 29; FM 30; SLE 33) who visited H-University Rheumatism Hospital in Seoul. The data were collected by a structured questionnaire from May 1, 1999 to April 30, 2000. The results were as follows: Patients of 95% experienced fatigue in the last week and a fatigue score of three disease groups were above average. The fatigue score of FM patients was highest in the other disease, but which was not a statistically significant difference(F=1.417, p=.248). The mean score of AS and FM patients in pain was higher than the SLE patients, and there was the statistical significance among the three groups on pain (F=8.239, p=.001). There wasn't a statistical difference among three groups on coping wtih pain(F=1.451, p=.240). There wasn't any correlation between fatigue and pain in each disease (AS: r=.008, p=.966; FM: r=.328, p=.077; SLE: r=.237,p=.185). Therefore, morning stiffness and pain management during sleeping is needed through good body alignment in the AS patients. Adequate rest for fatigue and multiple coping strategies for pain maybe basic nursing intervention in FM and SLE. According to their fatigue rhythm, a regular exercise program is needed for rheumatic disease because they complained of fatigue above average and their fatigue was repeated better and worse only during the one week.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.114-123
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• 2021

Background: Evaluation of the effectiveness of caudal epidural injection on pain, spine mobility, disease activity, and activity of daily living in axial spondyloarthritis (SpA) patients. Methods: A total sample of 47 patients were registered in this study. They were randomly assigned into 2 groups; Group I received caudal epidural injections, ultrasound-guided, with 1% lidocaine hydrochloride mixed with triamcinolone, whereas Group II did not receive any injections. All participants fulfilled the ASAS criteria for axial SpA. Outcome measures were as follows: visual analogue scale, Oswestry disability index (ODI), modified Schober test, lateral lumbar flexion, and Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Score (ASDAS) with assessment at baseline, 2 weeks, and 8 weeks post-treatment. This clinical trial was registered on clinicaltrials.gov under the number NCT04143165. Results: There was a significant difference between both groups regarding pain, ODI, spine mobility and ASDAS scores in favor of group I. This effect was at its maximum after 2 weeks. Despite the decline of this effect after 2 months, the difference between the groups remained significant. Higher disease activity, younger age, and shorter disease duration were associated with better outcomes. Conclusions: Epidural injection of lidocaine and triamcinolone is a cost effective and a practical technique for controlling pain, as well as improving the function of the spine and disease activity scores in axial SpA patients with acceptable complications and relatively sustained effect.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.1-15
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• 2018

Inflammasomes are intracellular multiprotein complexes that coordinate anti-pathogenic host defense during inflammatory responses in myeloid cells, especially macrophages. Inflammasome activation leads to activation of caspase-1, resulting in the induction of pyroptosis and the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines including interleukin $(IL)-1{\beta}$ and IL-18. Although the inflammatory response is an innate host defense mechanism, chronic inflammation is the main cause of rheumatic diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), ankylosing spondylitis (AS), and $Sj{\ddot{o}}gren^{\prime}s$ syndrome (SS). Since rheumatic diseases are inflammatory/autoimmune disorders, it is reasonable to hypothesize that inflammasomes activated during the inflammatory response play a pivotal role in development and progression of these diseases. Indeed, previous studies have provided important observations that inflammasomes are actively involved in the pathogenesis of inflammatory/autoimmune rheumatic diseases. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge on several types of inflammasomes during macrophage-mediated inflammatory responses and discuss recent research regarding the role of inflammasomes in the pathogenesis of inflammatory/autoimmune rheumatic diseases. This avenue of research could provide new insights for the development of promising therapeutics to treat inflammatory/autoimmune rheumatic diseases.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.129-134
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• 2023

In this review, we searched for clinical and experimental studies related to acupuncture-related therapy (ART) on the microbiome in musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) through the electronic databases of MEDLINE via PubMed, EMBASE, and Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System up to May 2023, without language restriction, and after the selection/exclusion process, the study design, target disease, intervention details, treatment period, outcomes, and study results were extracted. A total of 8 articles were selected. Two randomized controlled trials and 6 animal studies evaluated knee osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, spinal cord injury, ankylosing spondylitis, and osteoporosis. ART, including electroacupuncture, thread-embedding acupuncture, and moxibustion, affected microbiome modulation in MSDs. The results reveal that ART could be a potential treatment for regulating the microbiome in MSDs. However, further high-quality studies are needed.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.121-132
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• 2009

Objectives : To evaluate the current status of East-West combination treatment in joint disorders. Methods : The medical records of patients who visited the Joints & Rheumatism Center at the Kyung Hee East-West Neo Medical Center from April 2006 to June 2009 were evaluated. The general characteristics of patients who underwent combination treatment, trend in number of cross-system referrals, and disorders and involved body regions of patients referred to the Eastern medical hospital from the Western medical hospital were initially assessed. 6 major disorders were found from the initial scanning. The trend in number of cross-hospital referrals, number of visits to the Eastern medical hospital, current status of combination treatment, treatment modality, and reason for cross-system referral was evaluated. Results : 1. 1510 patients were referred from the Eastern medical hospital to the Western medical hospital, and 1065 patients were referred from the Western medical hospital to the Eastern medical hospital. First visit patients reached a peak at the second quarter of 2007 and fourth quarter of 2006 respectively, and have steadily decreased from then on. Referrals of female patients were twice as common as male patient referrals. Patients in their sixth or seventh decade of life were most commonly referred, and more outpatients were referred compared to inpatients. 2. Patients with knee joint disorders were most commonly referred from the Western medical hospital to the Eastern medical hospital, followed by hip, shoulder, ankle, wrist, and elbow joint disorders. The most common disorders for each of the above regions in referred patients were knee osteoarthritis, avascular necrosis of the hip, adhesive capsulitis, and ankle strain and sprain. The generalized disorders rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis followed. 3. Patients referred to the Eastern hospital received approximately 3 to 10 Eastern medical treatment sessions. 45 percent remained on constant combination treatment, and 98 percent of referred patients received acupuncture treatment. Conclusions : In regard to the number of patients and duration of combination treatment, combination treatment was successfully performed for knee osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and ankylosing spondylitis, while it was not so for avascular necrosis of the hip, adhesive capsulitis, and ankle strain and sprain. Further research on this subject is required.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.294-304
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• 2020

The sacroiliac joints connect the base of the sacrum to the ilium. When inflamed, they are suspected to cause low back pain. Inflammation of the sacroiliac joints is called sacroiliitis. The severity of the pain varies and depends on the degree of inflammation. Sacroiliitis is a hallmark of seronegative spondyloarthropathies. The presence or absence of chronic sacroiliitis is an important clue in the diagnosis of low back pain. This article aims to provide a concise overview of the anatomy, physiology, and molecular biology of sacroiliitis to aid clinicians in the assessment and management of sacroiliitis. For this narrative review, we evaluated articles in English published before August 2019 in PubMed. Then, we selected articles related to the painful manifestations of the sacroiliac joint. From the retrieved articles, we found that chronic sacroiliitis may be caused by various forms of spondyloarthritis, such as ankylosing spondyloarthritis. Sacroiliitis can also be associated with inflammatory bowel disease, Crohn's disease, gout, tuberculosis, brucellosis, and osteoarthritis, indicating common underlying etiological factors. The pathophysiology of sacroiliitis is complex and may involve internal, environmental, immunological, and genetic factors. Finally, genetic factors may also play a central role in progression of the disease. Knowing the genetic pre-disposition for sacroiliitis can be useful for diagnosis and for formulating treatment regimens, and may lead to a substantial reduction in disease severity and duration and to improved patient performance.