Does patient education in rheumatoid arthritis have therapeutic potential?

Article Abstract:

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a joint disease that causes joint pain, inflammation, and damage to joint tissue, and it results in limited mobility of the joints. The exact cause of RA is unknown, and at the present time there is no cure. Even with drug therapy many patients with RA continue to have pain, disability and a reduced quality of life. Therefore, new methods for treating patients with RA are needed. Patient education is one approach to this problem. By increasing the patients' knowledge about their condition, it may be possible to bring about changes in behavior (daily habits or lifestyle) that will have a positive effect on the patient's health and well-being. Many different education programs for patients with RA have been established and tested. Most of these programs are successful in increasing the patients' knowledge about their medical condition, while fewer programs have been successful in improving the health of the patient. For the patient with RA, pain is the biggest problem. Pain reduces the ability of the patient to perform daily activities and to work, and it can limit social activities as well. Therefore, the main objective in promoting health through patient education should be to focus on reducing the pain. The programs that have been most successful in improving the health of the patient and in improving the quality of life are the ones that emphasize pain relief, use a group setting for teaching, teach the patients how to solve daily problems, and use exercise training. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Planning, Chronic diseases, Behavior, Patient education, Arthritics

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Cervical spine surgery in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: an appraisal

Article Abstract:

Neck surgery for patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) appears to provide pain relief and to prevent symptoms associated with nerve damage from worsening. Doctors evaluated 28 patients with RA for improvement in pain relief and neurological symptoms 12-65 months following neck surgery as reported by the patients as well as by X-ray and neurological testing. Seventy-six percent of the patients with neck pain before surgery reported experiencing pain relief at the follow-up examination. Sixty-nine percent of the patients with symptoms associated with nerve damage reported an improvement in those symptoms at the follow-up examination. However, neurological tests, as measured by Ranawat scores, confirmed improvement in only 27% of these patients. Among those patients with nerve symptoms, those with the least nerve damage before surgery benefited the most from the procedure. There did not seem to be any obvious factors that increased the risk for death following this surgery.

Evaluation, Surgery, Neck, Vertebrae, Cervical, Cervical vertebrae, Therapeutics, Surgical, Surgical therapeutics

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Seven year changes in health status and priorities for improvement of health in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Article Abstract:

The changes in the health status of patients with rheumatoid arthritis during 1994-2001 are examined.

Norway

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