SAA SpA Patient Treatment Guidelines
As a patient-centered organization, having these simplified treatment guidelines is an opportunity to empower and support the community we serve, says SAA CEO, Cassie Shafer.
VAN NUYA, Calif. (PRWEB)
December 05, 2019
SAA, in partnership with a volunteer taskforce of patients, physicians, and other experts, is proud to announce the release of its 2019 Axial Spondyloarthritis Treatment Recommendations for Patients and Families. The 2019 Clinical Practice Guidelines for physicians included 86 recommendations with updates and new guidance for the management of patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis (nr-axSpA) in the areas of pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic treatment options; axial SpA-related comorbidities; and disease activity assessment, imaging, and screening. SAA’s 2019 Patient Treatment Guidelines present key updates and specific treatment recommendations from the original clinical manuscript. Information is presented in simple terms to empower patients and their families to have productive conversations with their healthcare teams that will ultimately lead to more informed treatment decisions and better health outcomes. “As a patient-centered organization, having these simplified treatment guidelines is an opportunity to empower and support the community we serve,” says SAA CEO, Cassie Shafer.
The first-ever treatment guidelines for U.S. physicians treating ankylosing spondylitis and non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis were published by the American College of Rheumatology, the Spondylitis Association of America, and the Spondyloarthritis Research and Treatment Network, and released in September of 2015. In August of 2019, the three organizations, physicians, scientists, patients, and other experts from the SpA community came together again to update these recommendations.
Both publications included “specific, actionable recommendations that clinicians could readily apply in their practices” to better serve the patient. For the more than 2.7 million Americans currently living with the disease, SAA’s 2019 Patient Treatment Guidelines serve as a helpful resource that is based on all available scientific evidence and the expertise and experiences of rheumatologists and people with axial SpA.
This document is divided into several categories: one for general information that applies to patients with axial SpA and more specific categories for patients with stable disease (no or mild signs and symptoms), or active disease (consistently moderate or severe signs and symptoms), and patients taking either non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), or biologic drugs. Copies of the 2019 Guidelines are available on SAA’s website at spondylitis.org.
About the Spondylitis Association of America
Since our founding in 1983, the Spondylitis Association of America has been the leading national nonprofit providing educational resources, connections, and the critical emotional support that people living with spondyloarthritis need. SAA is committed to increasing awareness of spondyloarthritis, providing information and support to patients and their families, and funding research to ultimately uncover a cure for the disease.
SAA has a wealth of information, educational materials, and resources for medical practitioners, the newly diagnosed, people who are seeking a proper diagnosis, and people who have already been diagnosed and living with the disease.
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