Musculoskeletal care
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Musculoskeletal care · Dec 2010
Self-management strategies used during flares of rheumatoid arthritis in an ethnically diverse population.
Effective management of flares of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can improve symptoms and may delay disease progression. The practice of rheumatologists in managing a flare has been studied, but patients' experiences of, and responses to, disease flares remain poorly defined. This study aimed to address this issue. ⋯ This study identified a link between causal attribution of flares and the resultant self-management strategies. A perceived trigger of the flare in some patients formed a focus for their self-management strategies, whereas those who could not identify a cause aimed mainly to alleviate symptoms. A better understanding of patients' perspective in the context of disease flares will allow the development of educational programmes to facilitate more effective self-management of this important manifestation of disease.