Objective: To evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of the ESSG criteria when applied to Brazilian patients with SpA and control patients with other rheumatic diseases.
Methods: Seventy patients with spondylarthropathies and 62 patients with other rheumatic diseases were interviewed, examined and had their charts reviewed. The diagnoses of the diseases were based on published diagnostic guidelines or classification criteria. Data were also collected according to the ESSG criteria.
Results: The sensitivity and specificity of the ESSG classification criteria were 98.5% and 88.7%, respectively. The sensitivities of the criteria in the different subgroups of SpA ranged from a low of 97.7% in AS to a high of 100% in other SpA studied.
Conclusion: Despite differences in the socio-cultural and geographic characteristics and in individual disease frequencies, the ESSG preliminary classification criteria performed well when applied to Brazilian patients.