Poster presenter: Pamela Weiss, MD, MSCE, clinical research director of the Division of Rheumatology at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Poster title: Development of Candidate Criteria for Axial Disease in Juvenile Spondyloarthritis: An International Collaboration
Scheduled poster session day and time: Monday, Nov. 9, 9 – 11 a.m.
What is your poster about?
Classification criteria for axial disease in children with spondyloarthritis (SpA) are being developed through an international collaboration. The objective of this study was to identify and grade a set of items that maximizes the likelihood of accurate classification of children and adolescents with axial disease. This poster details the results of phase 1 on the criteria development, including item-generation exercise, grading exercise, and the resulting inclusion, exclusion, candidate additive, and negatively weighted criteria.
Why did you decide to investigate this topic?
The lack of pediatric classification criteria for axial disease is a major impediment to the conduct of clinical trials for juvenile SpA.
What excites you most about your work?
We have identified a group of internationally known and experienced juvenile SpA experts that can define all of the key methodologic clinical and imaging criteria necessary to achieve our goals. These criteria, importantly, will be applicable in populations where imaging such as MRI may not be readily available, as the classification system will be based on an additive point system where it may be possible for a case to reach the threshold score without particular criteria such as imaging being present. Without this criteria, trials of novel and targeted therapeutics cannot move forward in the field for children and adolescent with axial disease.
What are you working on next related to this poster?
Next steps of this project include refinement and weighting of criteria as well as determination of threshold for classification.