0000000000363110
AUTHOR
Tuulikki Sokka
Stability of the upper neck during isometric neck exercises in rheumatoid arthritis patients with atlantoaxial disorders.
To study the effect of isometric neck strength exercises on upper cervical stability in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).Twenty patients with a mean (SD) age of 58 (9) years and duration of RA of 27 (10) years volunteered for the study. Lateral radiographs of the cervical spine were taken to measure the current atlantoaxial distance (AAD) in flexion and extension. Maximal isometric neck flexion and extension strength values were measured by a dynamometer. Thereafter, AADs were measured from radiographs taken at 80-90% resistance of maximal strength.According to the full flexion radiographs at baseline, the patients were classified into three groups: eight patients without anterior at…
A physically demanding occupation predicts premature retirement among patients with erosive arthritis
The aim of this study was to assess the intensity of exercise and energy expenditure of patients with recent onset inflammatory arthritis in their occupational environments and leisure time physical activities. The exercise intensities and energy expenditures of 41 early inflammatory arthritis patients and 20 matched healthy controls were assessed in occupational work and in leisure time physical activities during a 3.5-year follow-up using metabolic unit values. Disease activity was assessed by erythrocyte sedimentation rate and Ritchie's articular index. Subjective disability was assessed by the Stanford Health Assessment Questionnaire and the extent of joint damage on X-rays of the hands…
Scores for functional disability in patients with rheumatoid arthritis are correlated at higher levels with pain scores than with radiographic scores
Objective To analyze correlations of functional disability scores with other measures of clinical status, in particular, Larsen radiographic scores and pain scores, in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods The functional capacity of 141 patients with RA (102 women, 39 men; median age 57 years; median disease duration 11.8 years; 83% rheumatoid factor positive) was assessed according to the Stanford Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ). Other variables studied included Larsen scores for radiographic damage of the small joints of the hands, wrists, and feet, pain scores by visual analog scale (VAS), Disease Activity Scores, general health scores by VAS, and Beck Depression Invento…
A comparison of disease burden in rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis and axial spondyloarthritis
Objective: The main objective of this study was to compare disease burden in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and axial spondyloarthritis (ax-SpA). Methods: In this cross-sectional study, all the RA (1093), PsA (365) and ax-SpA (333) patients who visited the out-patient clinic of the Hospital of Southern Norway Trust during the year 2013 were included; the RA patients all had a RA diagnosis verified by the treating rheumatologist, the PsA patients all fulfilled the ClASsification for Psoriatic ARthritis (CASPAR) criteria and the ax-SpA patients all fulfilled the Assessment of SpondyloArthritis international Society (ASAS) classification criteria for ax-SpA. Patient-repor…
FRI0056 Joint damage in patients with rheumatoid arthritis over 15-20 years – are there differences between women and men?
Background Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is suggested to be a more severe disease in women than in men as disease activity appears higher in women and men meet remission criteria more often than women do. Long-term severity of RA can be analyzed from permanent joint damage in radiographs. Objectives To study possible differences in the extent of radiographic joint damage between women and men in four early RA cohorts with 15 or more years of prospective follow-up. Methods Early RA cohorts with prospective longitudinal observations include following cohorts: Jyvaskyla Central Hospital with 70 patients from 1990’s (JYV1990) and 135 patients from the 1980’s (JYV1980), Lund University Hospital with…
Muscle strength characteristics and central bone mineral density in women with recent onset rheumatoid arthritis compared with healthy controls.
Muscle strength and bone mineral density (BMD) at the lumbar spine (BMDspine) and femoral neck (BMDfem) were determined in 20 healthy women and in 20 women with recent onset rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The mean duration of articular symptoms of the patients was eleven months and none of them had used glucocorticoids or disease modifying antirheumatic drugs. BMDs were measured by dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Knee extension, trunk extension, and flexion as well as grip strength were measured with David 200 and Digitest dynamometers. BMDspine (1.17 g/cm2 and 1.20 g/cm2) and BMDfem (0.98 g/cm2 and 0.96 g/cm2) between the women with early RA and healthy women did not differ. However, knee ext…
Chronic back pain in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and in a control population: prevalence and disability--a 5-year follow-up.
Objectives. To determine the prevalence of chronic back pain and its changes over 5 years in patients with RA compared with community controls and to evaluate the influence of chronic back pain in functional capacity, general pain and global health. Methods. The prevalence of chronic back pain in 1076 patients with RA and in 1491 community controls was evaluated using a mailed questionnaire, which also queried the functional capacity on the HAQ, and general pain and global health on visual analogue scales. Results. Chronic back pain was more frequent in the general population than in patients with RA: 19% of patients with RA and 25% of controls reported chronic back pain (P < 0.001). After …