Profile of:

Karl Gaffney


Karl Gaffney (MB, BCh, BAO Hons, FRCPI, FRCP) has been a Consultant Rheumatologist in Norwich since 1995 where he is service lead for axial spondyloarthritis and adolescent/transition rheumatology. He is an Honorary Professor at Norwich Medical School, Chair BRITSpA (www.britspa.co.uk), Chair, British Society for Rheumatology (BSR) axial SpA Targeted Therapy Guidelines Committee, member of the National Early Inflammatory Arthritis Project Working Group, invited member of the Assessment of Spondyloarthritis International Society www.asas-group.org, former chair of the NASS medical advisory board and associated editor Rheumatology. He has also represented the BSR and NASS at the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) appraisal of targeted therapies since 2007. He was Rheumatology Service Director from 2008 until 2016, Director of Postgraduate Education in Norwich between 1999 and 2005, Director of Rheumatology Training, Eastern Deanery between 2001 and 2007 and Chair of the NASS Medical Advisory Board (2010-1022). With NASS he has co-developed multiple primary and secondary care educational programmes for healthcare professionals including Back Pain Seminars, Meeting in a Box ,RCGP elearning modules, NASS Allies and Back Pain Plus. These initiatives have been awarded national and International awards for excellence in healthcare communication. He is co-lead clinician of the NASS National Gold Standard Delay to Diagnosis project, launched in June 2021 www.actonaxialspa.com. Personal awards include the NASS Unsung Hero Award and National Gold Changemaker Award (2023). His research interests include epidemiology, dose optimisation and extra-articular manifestations of axial SpA. He oversees a large clinical trials programme and has published over 200 original papers. He is frequently an invited speaker at national and international meetings. A full list of publications can be viewed on https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7863-9176 GMC Number: 3622210

Full name: Karl Gaffney

Current country: United Kingdom

Membership level: Full

Type of membership: Member

Number of publications: 115

Empowering people to take control of their persistent low back pain through public awareness campaigning (2025)
https://doi.org/10.1093/rheumatology/keaf022

BRITSpA at 10 (2024)
https://doi.org/10.1093/rheumatology/keae519

Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor neutralisation in patients with axial spondyloarthritis in the UK (NAMASTE) (2024)
https://.doi.org/10%2010.1093/rheumatology/keaf022

Matching-Adjusted Indirect Comparison of the 52-Week Efficacy of Bimekizumab Versus Secukinumab and Ixekizumab for the Treatment of Radiographic Axial Spondyloarthritis (2024)
https://doi.org/10.1007/s40744-024-00684-z

British Axial Spondyloarthritis Inception Cohort (BAxSIC): a protocol for a multicentre real-world observational cohort study of early axial spondyloarthritis (2024)
https://doi.org/10.1093/rap/rkae087

Improved physical functioning, sleep, work productivity and overall health-related quality of life with bimekizumab in patients with axial spondyloarthritis: results from two phase 3 studies (2024)
https://doi.org/10.1136/rmdopen-2024-004202

Effect of a 2-week interruption in methotrexate treatment on COVID-19 vaccine response in people with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (VROOM study): a randomised, open label, superiority trial (2024)
https://doi.org/10.016/S2665-9913(23)00298-9

Evaluation of the current use of MRI to aid the diagnosis of axial spondyloarthritis in the UK: results from a freedom of information request (2024)
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crad.2023.10.009

Comparative Efficacy of Biologic Disease-Modifying Anti-Rheumatic Drugs for Non-Radiographic Axial Spondyloarthritis: A Systematic Literature Review and Bucher Indirect Comparisons (2023)
https://doi.org/10.1007/s40744-022-00522-0

Real-world evidence for secukinumab in UK patients with psoriatic arthritis or radiographic axial spondyloarthritis: interim 2-year analysis from SERENA (2023)
https://doi.org/10.1093/rap/rkad055

Treatment of axial spondyloarthritis with biologic and targeted synthetic DMARDs: British Society for Rheumatology guideline scope (2023)
https://doi.org/10.1093/rap/rkad039

Efficacy and safety of bimekizumab in axial spondyloarthritis: results of two parallel phase 3 randomised controlled trials (2023)
https://doi.org/10.1136/ard-2022-223595

Safety, tolerability, and efficacy of pirfenidone in patients with rheumatoid arthritis-associated interstitial lung disease: A randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 2 study (2023)
https://doi.org/10.1016/s2213-2600(22)00260-0

The PROPER Study; A 48-week, pan-European, real-world study of biosimilar SB5 following transition from reference adalimumab in patients with immune-mediated inflammatory disease (2023)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37632666/

Diagnostic Delay in axial spodyloarthritis (2023)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1521694223000566?via%3Dihub

Management of biologics in oral surgery (2023)
https://www.jomos.org/articles/mbcb/full_html/2023/03/mbcb230091/mbcb230091.html

Comparative efficacy of biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs for non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis: A systematic literature review and Bucher indirect comparisons (2023)
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40744-022-00522-0

Miscellaneous Arthropathies (2023)
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-05002-2_19

Interim 2-year analysis from SERENA: A real-world study in patients with psoriatic arthritis or ankylosing spondylitis treated with secukinumab (2022)
https://doi.org/10.1007/s40744-022-00460-x

Diagnostic delay is common for patients with axial spondyloarthritis: Results from the National Early Inflammatory Arthritis Audit (2022)
https://doi.org/10.1093/rheumatology/keab428

Current evidence on the use of the adalimumab biosimilar SB5 (ImraldiTM): a multidisciplinary perspective (2022)
https://doi.org/10.1080/14712598.2022.2012146

Identifying Axial Spondyloarthritis in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease Using Computed Tomography (2022)
https://doi.org/10.3899/jrheum.220362

Prevalence of undiagnosed axial spondyloarthritis in inflammatory bowel disease patients with chronic back pain: secondary care cross-sectional study (2022)
https://doi.org/10.1093/rheumatology/keac473

Miscellaneous Arthropathies (2022)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-05002-2_19

Miscellaneous Arthropathies (2022)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-05002-2_19

Inflammatory back pain: a concept, not a diagnosis. (2021)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33973548/

Delayed diagnosis in axial spondyloarthritis-how can we do better? (2021)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34244705

The ASAS-OMERACT core domain set for axial spondyloarthritis. (2021)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34489113/

Current evidence on the use of the adalimumab biosimilar SB5 (ImraldiTM): a multidisciplinary perspective (2021)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34918591/

Diagnostic delay is common for patients with axial spondyloarthritis: results from the National Early Inflammatory Arthritis Audit (2021)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33982063/

Feasibility, acceptability and change in health following a telephone-based cognitive behaviour therapy intervention for patients with axial spondyloarthritis. (2021)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34222775

Masterclass: Axial spondyloarthritis for osteopaths and manual therapists (2021)
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijosm.2021.03.005

Maintenance of clinical remission in early axial spondyloarthritis following certolizumab pegol dose reduction. (2020)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32381562

BRITSpA at five (2020)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31710687

Smoking in spondyloarthritis: unravelling the complexities. (2020)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32236486

Response to lower dose TNF inhibitors in axial spondyloarthritis; a real-world multicentre observational study (2020)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32793854

Response to lower dose TNF inhibitors in axial spondyloarthritis; a real-world multicentre observational study (2020)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32793854

Response to lower dose TNF inhibitors in axial spondyloarthritis; a real-world multicentre observational study (2020)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32793854

Response to lower dose TNF inhibitors in axial spondyloarthritis; a real-world multicentre observational study (2020)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32793854

Induction of Sustained Clinical Remission in Early Axial Spondyloarthritis Following Certolizumab Pegol Treatment: 48-Week Outcomes from C-OPTIMISE (2020)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32529495

Predictors of extra-articular manifestations in axial spondyloarthritis and their influence on TNF-inhibitor prescribing patterns: results from the British Society for Rheumatology Biologics Register in Ankylosing Spondylitis. (2020)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32641447

Secukinumab Use in Patients with Moderate to Severe Psoriasis, Psoriatic Arthritis and Ankylosing Spondylitis in Real-World Setting in Europe: Baseline Data from SERENA Study. (2020)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32378070

Feasibility, acceptability and change in health following a telephone-based cognitive behaviour therapy intervention for patients with axial spondyloarthritis. (2020)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34222775

Severe colitis complicating secukinumab (Cosentyx® ) therapy. (2019)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31854471

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