MRI relaxometry techniques combined with MAIT cell parameters for the assessment of disease activity in axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA)

Motivation: Currently, there is a lack of an objective quantitative measure to comprehensively evaluate the inflammatory activity of axSpA, which poses certain challenges in accurately assessing the disease activity. Goal(s): To establish a more reliable combined-parameter model for assessing the inflammatory activity of axSpA. Approach: T1 mapping values, T2* mapping values and the frequency of MAIT cells and CD69+MAIT cells are constructed into single-parameter and combined-parameter models using logistic regression. The diagnostic efficacy was evaluated by employing the ROC curves. Results: The model combining T1 mapping with CD69+MAIT cells showed relatively superior diagnostic efficacy in differentiating the severity of axSpA disease activity. Impact: The combined-parameter model incorporating T1 mapping and CD69+MAIT cells provided an effective objective quantitative indicator for evaluating the inflammatory activity of axSpA.