Arthritis and rheumatism
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To examine evidence-based quality indicators (QIs) in US veterans with gout diagnosis, and to examine the effect of demographics, heath care utilization/access, comorbid conditions, or physican characteristics as predictors of quality of gout care. ⋯ Suboptimal physician adherence to QIs was seen for all 3 QIs tested in this cohort of veterans with gout. These findings can guide quality improvement efforts.
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Arthritis and rheumatism · Jun 2007
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative StudyCost-utility analysis of a multidisciplinary job retention vocational rehabilitation program in patients with chronic arthritis at risk of job loss.
To estimate from a societal perspective the cost-utility of a multidisciplinary job retention vocational rehabilitation program compared with usual care in patients with chronic rheumatic diseases at risk of job loss. ⋯ From a societal perspective, it remains unclear whether the program reduces or increases total costs. Further research on effective vocational rehabilitation is warranted, with special attention to early detection of work problems and the collaboration between health care and vocational rehabilitation services.
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Arthritis and rheumatism · Jun 2007
Randomized Controlled TrialResponder criteria for operant and cognitive-behavioral treatment of fibromyalgia syndrome.
To predict the effects of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and operant-behavioral therapy (OBT) in fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS). ⋯ The results of this study suggest that pretreatment patient characteristics are important predictors of treatment response and may serve as a basis for matching treatments to patient characteristics. Prospective outcome studies are needed to confirm whether the tailoring of treatment actually leads to better outcomes for patients with FMS.
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Arthritis and rheumatism · Jun 2007
Comparative StudyUsing Rasch analysis to compare the psychometric properties of the Short Form 36 physical function score and the Health Assessment Questionnaire disability index in patients with psoriatic arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.
Item-response theory is increasingly used in the development of robust measurement tools. The extent to which the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ) disability index (DI) and Short Form 36 (SF-36) physical functioning subscale (PF) fit a Rasch model in psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is uncertain. Our objective was to compare the psychometric properties of the HAQ DI and SF-36 PF in PsA and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) using Rasch analysis. ⋯ The SF-36 PF has significant psychometric advantages over the HAQ DI in PsA.
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Arthritis and rheumatism · Jun 2007
Early aggressive care and delayed recovery from whiplash: isolated finding or reproducible result?
To test the reproducibility of the finding that early intensive care for whiplash injuries is associated with delayed recovery. ⋯ The observation that intensive health care utilization early after a whiplash injury is associated with slower recovery was reproduced in an independent cohort of patients. The results add to the body of evidence suggesting that early aggressive treatment of whiplash injuries does not promote faster recovery. In particular, the combination of chiropractic and general practitioner care significantly reduces the rate of recovery.