Occupational therapy assessments and interventions for patients with ankylosing spondylitis: a scoping review protocol.

Objective: The proposed scoping review aims to explore the literature on the occupational therapy (OT) scope of practice for patients with ankylosing spondylitis, including assessment methods and intervention approaches used by OT practitioners, areas of impairment addressed, and practice settings where OT practitioners provide services.

Introduction: Ankylosing spondylitis is a type of spondyloarthritis primarily involving inflammation of the spine. Studies have begun to examine the role of OT in addressing pain, function, and disability among patients with ankylosing spondylitis. Given the increased recognition of OT services for this population, a comprehensive understanding of the assessment methods and intervention approaches used by OT practitioners when working with ankylosing spondylitis would benefit clinicians, providers, and patients and support future research efforts.

Inclusion criteria: The review will consider studies that include participants of any age diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis and any form of OT assessment and intervention. All relevant published and unpublished studies will be considered, without date or language limitations, including all primary studies, gray literature, textual evidence papers, and clinical guidelines.

Methods: The review will follow the JBI methodology for scoping reviews. Searches will be conducted in MEDLINE (PubMed), Embase, CINAHL (EBSCOhost), Scopus, PsycINFO (EBSCOhost), ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global, SportDiscus (EBSCOhost), OTDBase, OTSeeker, and Google Scholar. Two reviewers will independently extract data from selected papers using a standardized tool modified for the review. The results will be presented using frequency tables and will be accompanied by a narrative summary.

Review registration: Open Science Framework https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/VPY56.