Systemic autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) are characterized by the alteration of immunological response, which can damage many organs and systems and result in a wide variety of clinical presentations. In addition to physical symptoms, psychiatric disorders are also common to many autoimmune diseases. Anxiety, depression, psychosis and cognitive deficits have the highest prevalence. The aim of this study was to display the degree of psychopathological symptoms in patients with RA and SLE.
Female inpatients with RA (N=68) and SLE (N=78) were recruited from the Rheumatology and Immunology Clinic of the University of Pecs and were asked to complete the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) and a short demografical form. The clinical personality profiles of the patient groups were explored and compared with each other.
High scores (above 64T) were detected on the Hypochondriasis (Hs), Depression (D) and Hysteria (Hy) scales in both groups. Besides, the participants performed elevated scores on the Masculinity-Feminity (Mf), Psychasthenia (Pt) and Social Introversion (Si) clinical scales. They scored in the elevated range on the Physical Malfunctioning, Subjective Depression, Lassitude-Malaise and Somatic Complaints subscales of the neurotic triad. No significant difference was found on the ten clinical scales between the SLE and RA patients.
Characteristics of MMPI-2 profiles in SLE and RA patients seem to be the consequence of the disease and a common feature of chronic conditions. High scores on the neurotic triad scales may reflect the comorbid psychiatric disorders and the somatic symptoms alike, so further investigations with the revised Hungarian MMPI-2 are needed.