Department of Rheumatology, Wonju Severance Christian Hospital, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju, Korea.
Department of Medical Informatics and Biostatistics, Graduate School, Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea.
Yonsei Med J. 2024 Dec;65(12):761-769. doi: 10.3349/ymj.2024.0041.
To investigate the epidemiological trends and socioeconomic disparities associated with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) in South Korea over a decade (2010-2021) using National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) claims data.
Employing data from the NHIS database, this study identified 31753 incident AS patients in 2010-2021. We calculated the annual age-standardized prevalence and incidence rates and analyzed crude incidence rates and diagnostic patterns across age groups. Additionally, we compared the mean annual proportions of medical aid recipients between AS patients and the general population, utilizing for trend analysis to assess the differences between the two groups across increasing age groups.
The study period saw a steady increase in age-standardized prevalence (from 34.6 to 91.0 per 100000) and incidence rates (from 4.41 to 8.33 per 100000 person-years), with the most substantial rise of incidence found in younger demographics. Diagnostic trends revealed a shift from internal medicine (IM) to other specialties including orthopedics with increasing patient age groups ( for trend=0.008), indicating old-age diagnosis in non-IM departments. A 1.4-fold higher proportion of medical aid recipients in AS patients (<0.001) and the widening gap of dependency on medical aid in older age groups ( for trend=0.012) compared to the general population highlight socioeconomic disparities.
This comprehensive analysis reveals the growing epidemiological burden of AS, especially in younger populations, and the socioeconomic disparities regarding the disease in South Korea. It underscores the need for early diagnosis and effective treatment strategies, paving the way for health interventions and policies aimed at improving patient outcomes and addressing socioeconomic disparities.
利用国民健康保险服务（NHIS）理赔数据，调查韩国强直性脊柱炎（AS）在十年（2010-2021 年）内的流行病学趋势和社会经济差异。
本研究利用 NHIS 数据库的数据，确定了 2010-2021 年 31753 例新确诊的 AS 患者。我们计算了年标准化患病率和发病率，并分析了各年龄组的粗发病率和诊断模式。此外，我们比较了 AS 患者和一般人群中医疗救助受助人的平均年比例，使用趋势分析来评估两组随年龄组增加的差异。
研究期间，年龄标准化患病率（从 34.6/100000 增加到 91.0/100000）和发病率（从 4.41/100000 人年增加到 8.33/100000 人年）呈稳步上升趋势，发病率在年轻人群中增幅最大。诊断趋势显示，随着患者年龄组的增加，从内科（IM）向其他专业科室（包括骨科）的转变（趋势检验=0.008），表明在非 IM 科室对老年患者进行诊断。AS 患者中医疗救助受助人的比例高出 1.4 倍（<0.001），并且随着年龄组的增加，对医疗救助的依赖差距也在扩大（趋势检验=0.012），与一般人群相比，这突显了社会经济差异。
这项全面分析揭示了 AS 在韩国的流行病学负担不断增加，尤其是在年轻人群中，以及该病的社会经济差异。它强调了需要进行早期诊断和有效的治疗策略，为旨在改善患者结局和解决社会经济差异的健康干预和政策铺平了道路。
