The objective of this study was to explore the impact of balance confidence on different activities of daily living (ADL) in older people with knee osteoarthritis (OA).
Forty-seven consecutive ...participants with knee OA were included in this cross-sectional study. They were divided according to the results of the Activities-specific Balance Confidence (ABC) Scale into a group with a low level of confidence in physical functioning (ABC < 50, n = 22) and a group with moderate and high levels of confidence (ABC ≥ 50, n = 25).
In the ABC < 50 group, the effect of pain on ADL, the physician's global assessment of the disease, and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index scores were significantly higher, while quality of life (Short form-36) was lower compared to the ABC ≥ 50 group. No significant difference was found between the two groups regarding the static and dynamic balance measurements.
Older people with knee OA who were less confident in their daily physical activities had more physical difficulties and a greater effect of pain on ADL, lower quality of life, and a higher physician's global assessment, but no differences were obtained in balance tests.
In people with knee OA, decreased balance confidence is associated with more physical difficulties, an increased effect of pain on ADL, and lower quality of life. An improved awareness of decreased balance confidence may lead to more effective management of older people with knee OA by improving their mobility and QOL through rehabilitation. Furthermore, future research in that direction is warranted.
Arteritis divovskih stanica Perković, Dijana; Grazio, Simeon; Kehler, Tatjana ...
Liječnički vjesnik,
04/2021, Letnik:
143, Številka:
3-4
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Arteritis divovskih stanica ili gigantocelularni arteritis (engl. Giant Cell Arteritis – GCA) najčešći je vaskulitis starije životne dobi. Obično zahvaća ogranke karotidnih arterija, poglavito ...temporalnu i oftalmičku arteriju. Nastanku bolesti uz genetsku predispoziciju doprinose i okolišni čimbenici. Interleukin 6 (IL-6), čija razina korelira s upalnom aktivnošću, jedan je od ključnih citokina u patogenezi bolesti. Sterilna upala stijenke arterije uz hiperplaziju intime i razvoj okluzije dovodi do ishemije koja je odgovorna za nastanak simptoma. U kliničkoj slici dominira glavobolja uz opće simptome. Može nastati i nagli gubitak vida zbog anteriorne ishemičke optičke neuropatije (engl. anterior ischemic optic neuropathy – AION). Nerijetko su prisutni i znakovi reumatske polimijalgije (polymyalgia rheumatica – PMR). U laboratorijskim nalazima tipična je izrazito ubrzana sedimentacija eritrocita (SE) i povišen C reaktivni protein (CRP). Dijagnoza se temelji na kliničkoj slici, laboratorijskim nalazima, patohistološkoj analizi bioptata temporalne arterije te radiološkim slikovnim prikazima. Brzo postavljanje dijagnoze ključno je za pravodobno i adekvatno liječenje i sprječavanje nastanka ranih i kasnih komplikacija (sljepoće, aneurizme i disekcije arterija). Liječenje je donedavno bilo ograničeno na primjenu glukokortikoida (GK) i konvencionalnih imunomodulatora. U ovom preglednom radu navedene su nove terapijske mogućnosti proizašle iz boljeg poznavanja patofiziologije bolesti. Recentna istraživanja rezultirala su korekcijama smjernica za liječenje GCA (što je 2018. godine učinilo i Hrvatsko reumatološko društvo) preporukom primjene IL-6 inhibitora, tocilizumaba u bolesnika s refraktornom ili relapsnom bolešću, a inicijalno u bolesnika s povišenim rizikom za razvoj komplikacija. U tijeku su klinička istraživanja koja otvaraju i druge terapijske opcije u skoroj budućnosti.
Abstract
Objective
To describe the development of an Environmental contextual factors (EF) Item Set (EFIS) accompanying the disease specific Assessment of SpondyloArthritis international Society ...Health Index (ASAS HI).
Method
First, a candidate item pool was developed by linking items from existing questionnaires to 13 EF previously selected for the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) /ASAS Core Set. Second, using data from two international surveys, which contained the EF item pool as well as the items from the ASAS HI, the number of EF items was reduced based on the correlation between the item and the ASAS HI sum score combined with expert opinion. Third, the final English EFIS was translated into 15 languages and cross-culturally validated.
Results
The initial item pool contained 53 EF addressing four ICF EF chapters: products and technology (e1), support and relationship (e3), attitudes (e4) and health services (e5). Based on 1754 responses of axial spondyloarthritis patients in an international survey, 44 of 53 initial items were removed based on low correlations to the ASAS HI or redundancy combined with expert opinion. Nine items of the initial item pool (range correlation 0.21–0.49) form the final EFIS. The EFIS was translated into 15 languages and field tested in 24 countries.
Conclusions
An EFIS is available complementing the ASAS HI and helps to interpret the ASAS HI results by gaining an understanding of the interaction between a health condition and contextual factors. The EFIS emphasizes the importance of support and relationships, as well as attitudes of the patient and health services in relation to self-reported health.
To assess the validity of the rheumatoid arthritis impact of disease (RAID) for measuring disease activity of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and to determine cut-off values for defining the disease ...activity states.
A total of 622 RA patients from an European database have been included. Cross-validation was based on assessment of convergent and discriminant validity. Optimal cut-offs were determined against external criteria by calculating the respective 25th and 75th percentiles mean values of RAID. External criteria included definitions for remission (REM), low disease activity (LDA), moderate disease activity (MDA) and high disease activity (HDA), cut-offs of the 28-joint disease activity score-C-reactive protein (DAS28-CRP) score.
The RAID showed a moderate degree of correlation with respect to DAS28-CRP (rho=0.417; P<0.0001). The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves to discriminate the ability of RAID to distinguish patients with active and non-active disease was very good with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.847 (95% confidence interval CI: 0.816 to 0.878; P<0.0001). Based on the distributions of RAID in the different disease activity groups, we propose the following cut-off values for REM: RAID ≤3; for LDA: RAID >3 and ≤4; for MDA: RAID >4 and ≤6; for HDA: RAID >6. Mean RAID differed significantly between patients classified as REM, LDA, MDA or HDA (P=0.001).
The cut-offs revealed good measurement characteristics in cross-validation analysis, had great discriminatory performance in distinguishing patients with different levels of disease activity and are suited for widespread use in everyday practice application and research.
Objective
To evaluate the 12-month efficacy and safety profile of adalimumab and etanercept in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and total spinal ankylosis (TSA).
Type of study design
...Case-series follow-up study.
Design
Twenty-eight patients (26 men and 2 women) with active AS (BASDAI > 4) and TSA were treated as follows: 19 patients receiving adalimumab and 9 patients receiving etanercept. Twelve-month data related to the efficacy and safety of these two TNF-alpha inhibitors were evaluated. The primary endpoint was ASAS 20 (the ASsessment in AS International Working Group criteria for 20% improvement) at weeks 12 and 52. Other measures that were evaluated were function (BASFI), disease activity (BASDAI), patient’s and physician’s global disease assessment on visual analogue scale (VAS) and C-reactive protein.
Results
In both adalimumab and etanercept groups, there was a significant improvement in all observed variables (baseline compared to weeks 12 and 52). This improvement was sustained for the whole follow-up period. In the adalimumab group, at week 12, ASAS 20 was achieved in 18/19 patients and at week 52 in 17/19 patients. In the etanercept group, at week 12 ASAS 20 was achieved in all patients and at week 52 in 6/9 patients.
Conclusion
In patients with active AS and TSA, adalimumab and etanercept treatment showed significant improvement in function and disease activity. No serious side effects or adverse effects were observed in our cohort.
Key Points
• TNF-alpha inhibitors can be effective treatment options for patients with AS and having total spinal ankylosis.
• Patients with advanced AS should not be disregarded as good candidates for treatment with biologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs.
The Routine Assessment of Patient Index Data 3 (RAPID3) is a patient-reported disease activity measure used to assess physical function, pain, and global health in patients with rheumatoid arthritis ...(RA) without formal joint counts. Since hand involvement and its decreased function are hallmarks of RA, the aim of our study was to investigate the performance of RAPID3 scores with regard to hand function and to confirm previous findings that the RAPID3 score as a disease activity measure is strongly correlated with the DAS28 score. Sixty-eight consecutive patients with RA (85% female), aged 18–75 years, were included in the study and were recruited during their outpatient visit. Apart from demographic and clinical data, the obtained parameters of interest included RAPID3 scores and assessments of the function of the hand, namely, the signal of functional impairment (SOFI)-hand, grip strength, and pulp-to-palm distance, as well the Health Assessment Questionnaire- Disability Index (HAQ-DI) and DAS28 scores. Pearson’s correlation coefficient, Student’s
t
test and linear regression were used in the statistical analysis of the results. The significance was set to
p
< 0.05. A positive correlation was found between RAPID3 scores and HAQ-DI scores, SOFI-hand scores, and pulp-to-palm distance, and negative correlation was observed between RAPID3 scores and grip strength. The order regarding the strength of correlations between RAPID3 scores and other variables (from the strongest to the weakest) was as follows: HAQ-DI, grip strength, SOFI-hand and pulp-to-palm distance. The hand assessment variables had stronger correlations with RAPID3 scores than with DAS28 scores. Our preliminary study showed that RAPID3 scores were strongly correlated with measurements of the functional ability of the hand, demonstrating that RAPID3 can be used as a measure of disease activity in clinical practice and to characterize hand function. Further studies are needed to confirm this result.
SAŽETAK
Adultne deformacije kralježnice značajno pridonose morbiditetu, napose starije popupacije. Iako je spektar uzroka raznolik najčešće se radi o novonastalim deformacijama na temelju ...degenerativnih promjena kralježnice. Osim bolova, osjećaja napetosti i drugih neugodnih simptoma, adultne deformacije rezultiraju biomehaničkim poremećajima, smanjenom pokretljivosti, a ponekad i neurološkim deficitima. Sveukupno, deformacije kralježnice u odraslih osoba uzrokuju značajnu onesposobljenost i lošiju kvalitetu života (fizičku i psihičku), dok su s druge strane u svakodnevnoj kliničkoj praksi relativno zanemarena patologija odrasle dobi. Stoga u ovom radu dajemo natativni pregled najnovijih spoznaja o etiopatogenezi, kliničkoj slici, slikovnoj dijagnostici, liječenju (konzervativnom i kirurškom) i postoperativnoj rehabilitaciji bolesnika s adultnim deformacijama najčešćih uzroka.
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