Somatotype in spondyloarthritis: a prevalence study in a Brazilian tertiary hospital

Objective: This study assessed the prevalence of somatotypes in different types and subtypes of spondyloarthritis based on the anthropometric, demographic, and phenotypic data. Method: The Heath and Carter method was used to determine the somatotype in 61 patients with spondyloarthritis who were being treated at a teaching hospital in Brazil. Analysis of variance and Fisher’s exact tests were used to statistically analyze the results. Results: The sample included individuals who were predominantly male (68.9%), Caucasian (63.9%), age [54.8 ±13.68 years], height [1.68 ± 0.1 meters], total body mass [81.64 ± 12.59 Kg], body mass index [29.06 kg/m 2 ± 4.23], fat percentage [28.94 ± 5.25], disease time [20.38 ± 10.44 years], and diagnosis time [16.6 ± 10.3 years]. In the types of spondyloarthritis, meso-endomorph was more prevalent [axial= 39 [16 (41%)] and peripheral= 22 [10 (45,5%)], with no direct relationship between the subtypes, but with meso-endomorph tendency, in the enthesopathic [6 (45.5%)] and intestinal phenotypes [2 (7.7%)]. Ankylosing spondylitis was characterized by hypertrophy and thinness, with the absence of cutaneous phenotype (p< 0.05), psoriatic spondyloarthritis due to hypotrophy and thinness with the presence of the cutaneous phenotype (p < 0.05), Meso-endomorph and mesomorph endomorph aggregate three phenotypes, whereas endo-mesomorph and endomorph mesomorph two. Conclusion: The study highlights to a heterogeneous spectrum on anthropometric distribution of spondyloarthritis, which can be considered for guidelines and individual treatment decisions.