A multicenter cross-sectional survey was conducted to study the current status of Health Related Quality of Life (HRQL) of Japanese patients with rheumatoid arthritis using a revised Japanese version of the AIMS 2, to investigate the association among the self-report physical disability scores and demographic, socioeconomic, and clinical variables in these patients.
A Japanese version of the AIMS 2 was administered to the randomly chosen 1614 patients with classical and definite rheumatoid arthritis attending arthritis clinics at eleven hospitals across the country. Self-report functional disability scores (FDSs) were calculated, by which patients were classified into five groups with graded levels of disability. Univariate correlations were examined between FDSs and the scores of the other four components of AIMS-HRQL, disease duration, age, medical costs, and physical and laboratory measures. Analysis of variance was performed to test for among level differences of these variables in each group of patients. Mean values and standard deviations of FDSs were calculated and analysis of variance was used to test for among level differences of the following factors: demographic, socio-economic, clinical measures, and treatment status.
Among four scales composing the AIMS 2-HRQL, work disability scores were most strongly correlated with FDSs, followed by the scores of pain, affection and social interaction. The more severely disabled group proved to have weaker grip strength, higher joint count, longer disease duration, higher ESR and blood level of CRP, and lower level of Hb. Patients with more disabilities proved to be older, pay more medical costs, have longer duration of morning stiffness, and higher level of RF. Patients with more advanced Steinbrocker's functional class, doctor's global assessment, Steinbrocker's anatomical stage, higher daily dose of prednisolone intake, lower level of annual income and formal education, and patients taking more kinds of NSAIDs proved to be more severely disabled. Separate, single (never married, widowed), and divorced patients proved to be more severely disabled compared with married ones. Overall, females were more disabled than males.
Physical disability is associated with the other important aspects of QOL, clinical signs and symptoms, and socio-economic conditions in RA patients. Prevention and management of physical disability should be seriously planned in consideration of the changes in these conditions in RA patients.