Clinical rheumatology
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Clinical rheumatology · Oct 2012
Self-reported knee instability and activity limitations in patients with knee osteoarthritis: results of the Amsterdam osteoarthritis cohort.
The objective of this study was to evaluate whether self-reported knee instability is associated with activity limitations in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA), in addition to knee pain and muscle strength. A cohort of 248 patients diagnosed with knee OA was examined. Self-reported knee instability was defined as the perception of any episode of buckling, shifting, or giving way of the knee in the past 3 months. ⋯ Joint proprioception, joint laxity, age, sex, BMI, duration of complaints, and radiographic severity did not confound the associations. In conclusion, self-reported knee instability is associated with activity limitations in patients with knee OA, in addition to knee pain and muscle strength. Clinically, self-reported knee instability should be assessed in addition to knee pain and muscle strength.
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Clinical rheumatology · Oct 2012
Randomized Controlled TrialThe effect of sulphurous water in patients with osteoarthritis of hand. Double-blind, randomized, controlled follow-up study.
The aim of the study was to demonstrate the effectiveness of sulphurous water in patients with osteoarthritis of the hand. Forty-seven patients with osteoarthritis of the hand were enrolled into the double-blind, randomized, controlled study, satisfying ACR criteria. One group of the patients (n = 24) received balneotherapy, bathing in sulphurous thermal water for 20 min per occasion, 15 times in all during a period of 3 weeks. ⋯ The improvement in quality of life was significant only at the end of the treatment, 6 months later not any longer. The difference between the two groups was significant after 3 months in point of pain and EQVAS. Balneotherapy and within this the sulphurous spa water alone may be effective for the attenuation of pain in patients with hand osteoarthrosis.
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Clinical rheumatology · Oct 2012
Comparative StudyQuantitative assessment of the "inexplicability" of fibromyalgia patients: a pilot study of the fibromyalgia narrative of "medically unexplained" pain.
The purpose of this study was to quantify the degree to which fibromyalgia patients perceive the cause of their pain to be inexplicable or difficult to understand. The author developed two simple Likert scales, Understand Pain Scale and Explain Pain Scale, which ask the subject to indicate the degree to which they are able to, respectively, understand the cause of their pain and to explain the cause of their pain to others. A total of 104 subjects who met the 1990 American College of Rheumatology Diagnostic Criteria for fibromyalgia (FM group), and 272 subjects with widespread pain who did not meet these criteria (non-FM group) completed these two instruments. ⋯ In contrast, 21.7 % of non-FM group subjects with widespread pain endorsed either of the aforementioned items. Compared to other patients with chronic, widespread pain, fibromyalgia patients report a much greater degree of difficulty in understanding the cause of their pain and explaining the cause of their pain to others. This phenomenon may reflect the narrative of "inexplicability" in fibromyalgia patients that distinguishes them from other widespread pain populations.
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Clinical rheumatology · Oct 2012
Health-related quality of life in Moroccan patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
We aimed to assess the aspects of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in Moroccan patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and to evaluate the disease-related parameters influencing it. Two hundred fifty-five patients with RA were consecutively included. We assessed sociodemographic characteristics, cigarette smoking status, disease duration, diagnosis delay, joint pain intensity (on a 0-100-mm visual analogue scale), disease activity (by the disease activity score (DAS 28) and biological tests), structural damage (by radiographs scored using the Sharp's method as modified by Van der Heijde), functional disability (by the Health Assessment Questionnaire), extra-articular manifestations, immunological status, and treatments. ⋯ The level of antibodies against citrullinated peptides had significant correlations with the impairment of physical domains of SF-36. Physical as well as mental aspects of HRQoL in our RA patients were significantly deteriorated. Recognizing complicated relationships between HRQoL and disease-related variables among our RA patients can help to develop further management strategies to improve patients' daily living particularly with the advent of new treatments.