Acta Reumatol Port
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Review Meta Analysis
Exercise and ankylosing spondylitis with New York modified criteria: a systematic review of controlled trials with meta-analysis.
Ankylosing spondylitis is a systemic rheumatic disease that affects the axial skeleton, causing inflammatory back pain, structural and functional changes which decrease quality of life. Several treatments for ankylosing spondylitis have been proposed and among them the use of exercise. The present study aims to synthesize information from the literature and identify the results of controlled clinical trials on exercise in patients with ankylosing spondylitis with the New York modified diagnostic criteria and to assess whether exercise is more effective than physical activity to reduce functional impairment. ⋯ The methodological quality was assessed to select those with an high methodological expressiveness using the PEDro scale. A cumulative meta-analysis was subsequently performed to compare exercise versus usual level of physical activity. Exercise shows significant statistical outcomes for the BASFI, BASDAI and BASMI, higher than those found for usual level of physical activity.