Polskie Archiwum Medycyny Wewnętrznej
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Pol. Arch. Med. Wewn. · Oct 2022
Patient-centered care and the "people first" principle as a tool to prevent stigmatization of patients with obesity.
Obesity is a global health problem with serious consequences, such as diabetes, dyslipidemia, cardiovascular disease, infertility, and certain cancers. Excess body weight, mainly due to its manifestation in an individual's appearance, also affects the psychological condition. Therefore, health care providers need to make an effort to diagnose and comprehensively treat obesity. ⋯ This phenomenon is associated with reduced compassion and willingness to help, and a feeling of dislike or even anger toward this group of patients. The consequences of stigmatization are worse mental health, poorer physical health, avoidance of health care, and the maintenance or increase of excess body weight. Therefore, talking about obesity using the principles of "people-first language," as well as implementing a patient‑centered care model are important.
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Pol. Arch. Med. Wewn. · Sep 2022
Multicenter Study Observational StudyDeep dive into achieving the therapeutic target: results from a prospective, 6-month, observational study nested in routine rheumatoid arthritis care.
Achieving remission or lowdisease activity (LDA) is an integral principle of treat‑to‑target (T2T) strategy in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Prior studies have reported that achieving T2T therapeutic goals may be realistic only for a fraction of patients. Prospective, real‑world data on achieving target disease control in ambulatory care populations are limited for Central and Eastern European countries. ⋯ A combination of clinical characteristics and provider treatment decisions shapes the "profile" of a patient failing to achieve T2T goals. Low‑dose steroid equivalent, never smoking, and lower body mass index appear as individual characteristics independently associated with achieving LDA / remission at 3 and 6 months.