23 September 2026
Every year, researchers, clinicians and patients benefit from findings generated through the BSR registers. Over the past 25 years, the registers have produced hundreds of conference abstracts, presentations and peer-reviewed publications, creating one of the richest sources of real-world rheumatology evidence in the UK. These research outputs have helped answer important questions about treatment safety, effectiveness, long-term outcomes and patient experience across Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA), Psoriatic Arthritis (PsA) and Axial Spondyloarthritis (AxSpA).
By capturing data from routine clinical practice, the registers provide valuable real-world evidence that compliments clinical trials and helps answer questions that cannot always be addressed in controlled research settings.
Today, the BSR registers continue to support a diverse programme of research. The extensive collection of published papers demonstrates the breadth of topics explored, from treatment effectiveness and safety to quality of life, work participation, cancer risk and long-term patient outcomes. Together, these outputs have strengthened understanding of rheumatic diseases and contributed to improvements in patient care both nationally and internationally.
The value of the registers is also recognised by the rheumatology community itself. In the 2025 BSR Registers Perception Survey, clinicians, nurses, pharmacists and researchers highlighted the importance of register data in supporting clinical decision-making and understanding treatment effectiveness and safety in real-world practice. Many respondents reported using register findings in their day-to-day work. Read the full survey report here.
None of this would be possible without the thousands of patients who participate in the studies, the NHS teams who support recruitment and follow-up, and the expert research teams at the University of Manchester and University of Aberdeen who transform data into evidence that improves care.
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