Basdai

BASDAI is the acronym for: Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index, a questionnaire used to assess disease activity in ankylosing spondylitis and other spondyloarthritides. It was developed to quantify the symptoms and extent of the disease and to monitor the effectiveness of treatments.

The BASDAI consists of six questions relating to various symptoms such as pain, stiffness, fatigue and the impact of the disease on daily life. The answers are scored on a scale from 0 to 10, with higher scores indicating greater disease activity. The results can help doctors and patients to better understand disease activity and adjust treatment accordingly.

1. Question about tiredness (fatigue): How much fatigue have you experienced in the last week?
2. Question about pain (spinal pain): How severe has your lower back pain been in the last week?
3. Question about stiffness (Spinal Stiffness): How severe has your morning stiffness in the lower back been in the last week?
4. Question about stiffness (Total Stiffness): How severe has your lower back stiffness been throughout the day in the last week?
5. Question about pain in the joints (Peripheral Pain): How much pain have you had in your large joints (such as hips, knees) in the last week?
6. Question about the more painful areas (Overall Well-being): Overall, how much pain and impairment from the condition have you had in the last week?

The points from these questions are added together and the average is calculated to obtain an overall score. A higher score indicates higher disease activity. The BASDAI is a useful tool for doctors and patients to track the progression of the disease and assess the effectiveness of treatment strategies.

The BASDAI is an important tool in rheumatology practice and is frequently used in clinical studies and for routine monitoring of patients.

1. Kwon OC et al. (2022) BASDAI cut-off values corresponding to ASDAS cut-off values. Rheumatology (Oxford) 61:2369-2374.
2. Zochling J (2011) Measures of symptoms and disease status in ankylosing spondylitis: Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Score (ASDAS), Ankylosing Spondylitis Quality of Life Scale (ASQoL), Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI), Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Global Score (BAS-G), Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Metrology Index (BASMI), Dougados Functional Index (DFI), and Health Assessment Questionnaire for the Spondylarthropathies (HAQ-S). Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken) 63 Suppl 11: 47-58