[Measurement of disease-related knowledge of patients with axial spondyloarthritis-Development and application of the G-ASKQ7 questionnaire].

Background and objective: Patient education is an integral component of the treatment of axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA). However, the validated tools currently available for assessing disease-related knowledge are outdated and, in the case of axSpA, only available in English. The aims of this work were therefore (1) to develop a German-language tool for assessing disease-specific knowledge among axSpA patients and (2) to assess this tool in a pilot study.

Methods: Available axSpA-specific tools were assessed by a panel of experts and a draft of the current G‑ASKQ7 questionnaire was agreed upon. After evaluation of face validity and subsequent adaptation, consecutive adult axSpA patients of a university hospital (Universitätsklinikum Erlangen) outpatient rheumatology department were asked to complete the questionnaire. Correlation between the patients' overall scores and other collected parameters (age, sex, and disease duration) were investigated.

Results: Patients rated the developed G‑ASKQ7 questionnaire comprising seven questions as easy to understand and completed it within an average of 6.3 ± 2.0 min. The final questionnaire was completed by 65 axSpA patients (36 women; mean age 45.3 ± 12.4 years; mean disease duration 8.6 ± 7.3 years). The average G‑AKSQ7 score was 17.8/25, with significantly higher scores among women (19.0/25) than men (16.3/25; p ≤ 0.05). The question most often answered correctly (79.3 %) was question 7 concerning disease self-management, whereas question 4 on measurement of disease activity received the most incorrect answers (55.8 %). No significant correlation between disease duration (p = 0.57; Pearson's correlation coefficient, r = 0.07) or age (p  = 0.67; r = -0.05) and disease-specific knowledge was found.

Conclusion: The G‑ASKQ7 represents the first German-language instrument for measuring disease-specific knowledge among axSpA patients. Routine application of this questionnaire would enable low-threshold assessment of an individual patient's knowledge requirements and thus provision of appropriate educational information. Continuous updates and further evaluation studies are required.