Biomedical subjects

M M Ward

Publications and source records attributed to M M Ward.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed2000

Outcomes of renal transplantation among patients with end-stage renal disease caused by lupus nephritis.

BACKGROUND: Although the outcomes of renal transplantation among patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) caused by lupus nephritis have generally been found to be comparable to those of patients with other causes of ESRD, some studies indicate that cadaveric graft failure is more common among these patients. However, most previous studies examined small numbers of patients and did not adjust for important confounding factors. METHODS: Graft failure and patient mortality after the first cadaveric renal transplantation were compared between 772 adults with ESRD caused by lupus nephritis and 32,644 adults with ESRD caused by other causes who received a transplant between 1987 and 1994 and were included in the United States Renal Data System. The median follow-up times were 4.9 and 5.0 years in the two groups, respectively. Multivariate Cox regression models were used to adjust the risks of graft failure and mortality for group differences in recipient and donor characteristics. Similar comparisons were performed between 390 adults with ESRD caused by lupus nephritis and 10,512 adults with ESRD caused by other causes after first living-related renal transplantation. RESULTS: In an unadjusted analysis, the risk of graft failure after first cadaveric transplant was slightly but significantly greater among patients with ESRD caused by lupus nephritis than among those with ESRD caused by other causes [hazard ratio (HR), 1.13; 95% CI, 1.01 to 1. 26, P = 0.04]. However, after adjustment for potential confounding factors, the risk of graft failure was not increased in patients with ESRD caused by lupus nephritis (HR, 1.08; 95% CI, 0.94 to 1.23, P = 0.28). Mortality after the first cadaveric transplantation did not differ between groups. The adjusted risks of graft failure (HR, 1.06; 95% CI, 0.84 to 1.32, P = 0.62) and patient mortality (HR = 0. 69; 95% CI, 0.45 to 1.05, P = 0.09) after the first living-related renal transplant were also not significantly higher among patients with ESRD caused by lupus nephritis. CONCLUSIONS: Graft and patient survival after first cadaveric and first living-related renal transplants are similar in patients with ESRD caused by lupus nephritis and patients with ESRD from other causes.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2000

Cardiovascular and cerebrovascular morbidity and mortality among women with end-stage renal disease attributable to lupus nephritis.

Cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases are common causes of morbidity and mortality in women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and are also common in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). To determine whether women with ESRD caused by lupus nephritis are at greater risk for morbidity from these conditions than women with other causes of ESRD, data from the US Renal Data System were used to compare incidence rates of hospitalizations for acute myocardial infarction and cerebrovascular accident between women with ESRD caused by lupus nephritis and women with ESRD from other causes. The age- and race-adjusted incidences of hospitalizations for acute myocardial infarction during dialysis were 16.4 hospitalizations/1,000 patient-years among women with ESRD caused by lupus nephritis and 17.3 hospitalizations/1,000 patient-years among women in the comparison group (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.80; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.58 to 1.08; P = 0.14). Adjusted incidence rates for acute myocardial infarction after renal transplantation also did not differ between these groups. Adjusted incidence rates for hospitalizations for cerebrovascular accident during dialysis were 18.5 hospitalizations/1,000 patient-years among women with ESRD caused by lupus nephritis and 19.2 hospitalizations/1,000 patient-years among women in the comparison group (adjusted hazard ratio, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.66 to 1.14; P = 0.30); incidence rates after transplantation also did not differ between groups. Risks for death from cardiovascular or cerebrovascular diseases also were not increased among women with ESRD caused by lupus nephritis. Sepsis was the most common cause of death in this group. Morbidity and mortality from acute myocardial infarction and cerebrovascular accident were substantially greater among women with ESRD caused by diabetes mellitus. Although morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases are common among women with SLE, risks for these outcomes are not greater among women with ESRD caused by lupus nephritis than among other women without diabetes with ESRD.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

Direct medical cost of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in the U.S.A.

The aim of this study was to estimate the direct medical costs of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in the United States using a public-payor perspective. Cost estimates were derived separately for 10 components of care using national survey databases and valued using Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement rates. COPD affects 15 million people in the U.S.A. and the total annual U.S. payment for care is $6.6 billion. Approximately one-third ($2.3 billion) is due to the cost of long-term oxygen therapy, one-quarter is attributed to hospitalizations and inpatient physician services ($1.9 billion), and one-seventh ($942 million) is due to nursing home stays. Other annual costs are outpatient physician visits ($480 million), prescription medications ($462 million), home healthcare ($309 million), emergency department visits ($148 million), outpatient diagnostic procedures ($55 million) and hospice care ($28 million). The cost of COPD is therefore considerable. The significant expenditure for long-term oxygen therapy indicates that disease severity is a major driver of costs. However, the cost of hospitalizations, nursing home stays, emergency department and physician visits are not insignificant.

Aged↗

PubMed2000

Health services in rheumatology.

Studies of the costs associated with rheumatic diseases, the referral of patients to rheumatology subspecialty care, rheumatology practice patterns, and the relation between medical care and patient outcomes are reviewed. Direct medical costs in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are higher among those with more functional disability. Direct medical costs in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) did not differ among Canadian, American, and British patients, despite substantial differences in the mechanisms by which medical care is financed and delivered in these three countries. The diagnostic accuracy of rheumatic complaints by primary care physicians may be low, and concomitant psychiatric disorders may not be uncommon among patients referred to rheumatologists. Most patient visits to rheumatologists involve patients with rheumatic diseases or musculoskeletal complaints, and few visits involve primary care. Fewer than half of elderly patients with RA or SLE are seen by a rheumatologist in a given year; access is particularly limited among black women. Early access to rheumatology subspecialty care may be associated with improved health status in patients with RA, and mortality among patients with SLE varies with the experience a hospital has in treating patients with SLE.

Cost-Benefit Analysis↗

PubMed2000

Why rural residents migrate for family physician care.

Several studies have examined why rural residents bypass local hospitals, but few have explored why they migrate for physician care. In this study, data from a random mail survey of households in rural Iowa counties were used to determine how consumers' attitudes about their local health system, health beliefs, health insurance coverage and other personal characteristics influenced their selection of local vs. nonlocal family physicians (family physician refers to the family practice, internal medicine or other medical specialist providing an individual's primary care). Migration for family physician care was positively associated with a perceived shortage of local family physicians and use of nonlocal specialty physician care. Migration was negatively associated with a highly positive rating of the overall local health care system, living in town, Lutheran religious affiliation and private health insurance coverage. By understanding why rural residents prefer to bypass local physicians, rural health system managers, physicians and policy-makers should be better prepared to design innovative health organizations and programs that meet the needs of rural consumers.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

The rating scale preference measure as an evaluative measure in systemic lupus erythematosus.

Preference measures may be useful tools to assess patients' overall health-related quality of life. We studied the validity and sensitivity to change of the rating scale preference measure in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and compared its properties with those of the patient global assessment of SLE activity, in a prospective longitudinal observational study of changes in the symptoms and clinical disease activity of 23 patients. Patients were assessed every two weeks for up to 40 weeks. Construct validity was assessed by the strength of correlations between changes over time in the rating scale preference measure and patient global assessment and changes in the physician global assessment, Systemic Lupus Activity Measure (SLAM), European Consensus Lupus Activity Measure (ECLAM), the British Isles Lupus Assessment Group index (BILAG), and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI). Changes in the rating scale were more highly correlated with changes in each of these standards than were changes in the patient global assessment, demonstrating the construct validity of this measure. Sensitivity to change was measured using the two-week interval of greatest change in either the physician global assessment or the SLE activity measures as standards. The rating scale preference measure was less sensitive to change than the patient global assessment when tested against four different standards. The sensitivity to change of the rating scale was less than one-half that of the patient global assessment when either the SLAM or ECLAM was used as the standard. Although these results support the validity of the rating scale as a measure of health-related quality of life in patients with SLE, its limited sensitivity to change may make it less attractive as an endpoint measure in clinical trials.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

Comparison of the validity and sensitivity to change of 5 activity indices in systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the construct validity and sensitivity to change of the Systemic Lupus Activity Measure (SLAM), Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI), Lupus Activity Index (LAI), British Isles Lupus Assessment Group index (BILAG), and the European Consensus Lupus Activity Measure (ECLAM). METHODS: Twenty-three patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) were examined prospectively every 2 weeks for up to 40 weeks. Nineteen patients completed all 20 assessments. At each assessment, each of the 5 activity indices was scored, along with physicians' and patients' global assessments of SLE activity. Construct validity was determined by the strength of correlations between changes over time in each activity index and changes in physician and patient global assessments. Sensitivity to change was determined by the magnitude of change in each index over the 2 week interval of greatest change in the physician or patient global assessments, and calculated as standardized response means (SRM; mean change/standard deviation of change). Thirteen patients were also examined monthly by a second physician who was blinded to previous scores on the activity indices and to the patient global assessments. RESULTS: Patients had substantial changes in SLE activity during the study. Changes in each activity index were correlated with changes in the physician global assessment (SLAM r = 0.54; SLEDAI r = 0.52; LAI r = 0.75; BILAG r = 0.61; ECLAM r = 0.65; all p < 0.0001). Correlations were somewhat lower with the blinded physician assessment (SLAM r = 0.42; SLEDAI r = 0.12; LAI r = 0.30; BILAG r = 0.28; ECLAM r = 0.32). The SLAM was the only index that was positively correlated with changes in the patient global assessment (r = 0.22; p < 0.0001). Sensitivity to change was greatest for the LAI (SRM = 0.74) and the ECLAM (SRM = 0.75) and smallest for the SLEDAI (SRM = 0.48) when the physician global assessment was used as the standard. Sensitivity to change was greatest for the SLAM (SRM = 0.61) and the BILAG (SRM = 0.57) and smallest for the SLEDAI (SRM = -0.01) when the patient global assessment was used as the standard. CONCLUSION: Each index is a valid measure of SLE activity. The SLAM captures patients' assessments better than the other indices, perhaps because it assesses the patients' subjective complaints to a greater extent. Estimates of sensitivity to change varied with the standard used, but the SLEDAI was least sensitive to change. Larger studies are indicated to further compare the sensitivity to change of these indices.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

Development and testing of a systemic lupus-specific risk adjustment index for in-hospital mortality.

OBJECTIVE: Valid comparison of patient outcomes among hospitals requires adjustment for differences in the severity of patients' illness. Disease-specific indexes of severity of illness may permit more accurate risk adjustment than generic indexes. The objective of this study was to develop a systemic lupus-specific risk adjustment index for in-hospital mortality, and to compare its performance to that of the generic Charlson index. METHODS: A systemic lupus-specific risk adjustment index was developed using discharge abstract data from a 50% random sample (n = 4994) of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) hospitalized on an emergent or urgent basis in California from 1991 to 1994 (n = 9989). The index was tested on the remaining members of the sample. Candidate variables for the index were the diagnoses included in the original Charlson index, and nephritis, chronic renal failure, pericarditis, pleuritis, psychosis, seizures, hemolytic anemia, and thrombocytopenia. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify the set of variables that best differentiated those patients who died in the hospital from those who survived, and to provide the weights for construction of the index. RESULTS: In the derivation set of patients, the SLE-specific index accurately predicted in-hospital mortality (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve c = 0.79). In the test set, the SLE-specific index (c = 0.72) was similar to the original Charlson index (c = 0.74) in its ability to predict in-hospital mortality (p = 0.32). However, the SLE-specific index accounted for substantially more variation in the risk of mortality among patients (R2 = 0.069) than did the Charlson index (R2 = 0.036). Use of the SLE-specific index rather than the Charlson index for risk adjustment did not alter the association between hospital experience and the probability of in-hospital mortality. Results were similar in the subgroups of patients with emergent hospitalizations and those with emergent hospitalizations due to SLE. CONCLUSION: The SLE-specific risk adjustment index developed from diagnoses recorded in administrative discharge abstracts performed similarly to the generic Charlson index in correctly classifying mortality outcomes, but the SLE-specific index stratified patients by their level of risk of mortality better than the Charlson index. Adjustment for SLE-specific risks of mortality did not alter the association between hospital experience and the risk of in-hospital mortality.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2000

Hospital experience and expected mortality in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus: a hospital level analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether a hospital's experience in treating patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is associated with the risk of in-hospital mortality among these patients. METHODS: The California Hospital Discharge Database, which contains information on all discharges from acute care hospitals in California, was used to identify patients with SLE hospitalized on an emergent or urgent basis from 1991 to 1994 (n = 9,989). For each of the 413 hospitals at which these patients were hospitalized, expected mortality risks were computed based on a model that included patient demographic and clinical characteristics, and differences between the observed and expected numbers of deaths were calculated. This difference was then associated with the average annual number of patients with SLE admitted to each hospital on an emergent or urgent basis. Similar analyses were performed for the subset of 2,372 patients hospitalized on an emergent basis (at 293 hospitals), and the subset of 405 patients hospitalized on an emergent basis due to SLE (at 122 hospitals). RESULTS: In all 3 patient subsets, there was an inverse association between the average annual number of patients with SLE hospitalized on an urgent or emergent basis at a hospital and the difference between the observed and expected number of deaths at that hospital. Highly experienced hospitals had fewer than expected deaths, while there was little association between the difference between the observed and expected number of deaths among less experienced hospitals. CONCLUSION: Hospitals that treat larger numbers of patients with SLE have fewer than the expected number of deaths among such patients.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Premature morbidity from cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases in women with systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVE: To determine rates of morbidity due to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases among women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). METHODS: I used the California Hospital Discharge Database, which contains information on all discharges from acute care hospitals in California, to identify women with SLE who had been hospitalized for treatment of either acute myocardial infarction (AMI), congestive heart failure (CHF), or cerebrovascular accident (CVA) from 1991 to 1994. I compared the proportions of hospitalizations for each cause among women with SLE with those in a group of women without SLE, for 3 age strata (18-44 years, 45-64 years, and > or =65 years). RESULTS: Compared with young women without SLE, young women with SLE were 2.27 times more likely to be hospitalized because of AMI (95% confidence interval [95% CI] 1.08-3.46), 3.80 times more likely to be hospitalized because of CHF (95% CI 2.41-5.19), and 2.05 times more likely to be hospitalized because of CVA (95% CI 1.17-2.93). Among middle-aged women with SLE, the frequencies of hospitalization for AMI and CVA did not differ from those of the comparison group, but the risk of hospitalization for CHF was higher (odds ratio [OR] 1.39, 95% CI 1.05-1.73). Among elderly women with SLE, the risk of hospitalization for AMI was significantly lower (OR 0.70, 95% CI 0.51-0.89), the risk of hospitalization for CHF was higher (OR 1.25, 95% CI 1.01-1.49), and the risk of hospitalization for CVA was not significantly different from those in the comparison group. CONCLUSION: Young women with SLE are at substantially increased risk of AMI, CHF, and CVA. The relative odds of these conditions decrease with age among women with SLE.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1999

Provision of primary care by office-based rheumatologists: results from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Surveys, 1991-1995.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the extent to which office-based rheumatologists provide primary care to patients without rheumatic diseases or provide principal care to patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS: The National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey was used to determine national probability estimates of the nature and types of conditions treated by office-based rheumatologists in 1991-1995. At each of 1,074 patient visits, the rheumatologists recorded up to 3 diagnoses and 3 patient-reported reasons for the visit, as well as information on the treatments provided at the visit. RESULTS: In only 9.8% of new consultations and 11.9% of return visits was neither a rheumatic disease diagnosis nor a musculoskeletal complaint recorded, indicating that the rheumatologist was likely acting as a primary care provider at a minority of patient visits. Among continuing patients with RA, the patient's primary reason for the visit was something other than a musculoskeletal complaint in only 9.9% of visits, and any nonrheumatic complaint was recorded in 30.4% of visits, indicating that at only some visits was the rheumatologist acting as the principal caregiver. In addition, only 31.1% of visits included the provision of medication for a nonrheumatic condition. CONCLUSION: In 1991-1995, most visits to rheumatologists involved the provision of specialized or consultative care to patients with rheumatic diseases or musculoskeletal complaints, and few visits were made by patients without either indication. Provision of principal care by rheumatologists to patients with RA is not currently widespread.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1999

Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in patients with connective tissue diseases: the role of hospital experience in diagnosis and mortality.

OBJECTIVE: Pneumonia due to Pneumocystis carinii has been increasingly reported in patients with connective tissue diseases, but the frequency of this complication is not known. We sought to determine the frequency of P carinii pneumonia (PCP) in patients with connective tissue diseases, and to determine the role that a hospital's acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)-related experience may have in the diagnosis of PCP in these patients. METHODS: We used a state hospitalization registry to identify all patients with PCP and either rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, Wegener's granulomatosis, polymyositis, dermatomyositis, polyarteritis nodosa, or scleroderma who had an emergent or urgent hospitalization in California from 1983 to 1994. We compared patient and hospital characteristics between these patients and patients with connective tissue diseases hospitalized with other types of pneumonia. RESULTS: Two hundred twenty-three patients with connective tissue diseases were diagnosed with PCP in the 12-year study period. The frequency of PCP ranged from 89 cases/10,000 hospitalizations/year in patients with Wegener's granulomatosis to 2 cases/10,000 hospitalizations/year in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Compared with 5,457 patients with connective tissue diseases and pneumonia due to other organisms, patients with PCP were more likely to be younger, to be male, to have private medical insurance, and to have systemic lupus erythematosus, Wegener's granulomatosis, inflammatory myopathy, or polyarteritis nodosa rather than rheumatoid arthritis, and were less likely to be African American. Hospital size, teaching status, urban/rural location, proportion of admissions due to AIDS or PCP, and proportion of patients with pneumonia undergoing bronchoscopy were each associated with the likelihood of diagnosis of PCP in univariate analyses, but only the number of patients with PCP being treated at a hospital (odds ratio [OR] 1.03 for each additional 10 cases/year, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 1.01-1.05) was associated with the likelihood of diagnosis of PCP in multivariate analyses. Patients were also somewhat more likely to be diagnosed with PCP if there had previously been a case of PCP in a patient with a connective tissue disease at the same hospital (OR 135, 95% CI 0.98-1.85). In-hospital mortality was 45.7%, and was unrelated to hospital characteristics. CONCLUSION: PCP is an uncommon, but often fatal, occurrence in patients with connective tissue disease. A hospital's prior experience with patients with PCP is associated with the likelihood that this condition is diagnosed in patients with connective tissue diseases who present with pneumonia, suggesting that diagnostic suspicion is an important factor in the correct identification of affected patients.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Hospital experience and mortality in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if a hospital's experience in treating patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is associated with in-hospital mortality among patients with this condition. METHODS: The California Hospital Discharge Database, which contains information on all discharges from acute-care hospitals in California, was used to identify patients with SLE hospitalized from 1991 to 1994 (n = 9,989). The risks of in-hospital mortality were compared between patients admitted to hospitals in which there was a high degree of experience (those with an average of >50 urgent or emergency SLE admissions per year) and those in which there was less experience. RESULTS: Patients admitted on an urgent or emergency basis to hospitals in which there was a high degree of experience had a slightly lower risk of in-hospital mortality than patients admitted to hospitals in which there was less experience (mortality 3.8% versus 5.3%; adjusted odds ratio [OR] 0.72, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 0.50-1.04). In the subset of 2,372 patients hospitalized on an emergency basis, those admitted to hospitals in which there was a high degree of experience had a risk of in-hospital mortality that was 66% lower than that of patients admitted to hospitals in which there was less experience (mortality 4.2% versus 11.3%; adjusted OR 0.34, 95% CI 0.19-0.58). In the subset of 405 patients hospitalized on an emergency basis due to SLE, those admitted to hospitals in which there was a high degree of experience had a risk of in-hospital mortality that was 95% lower than that of patients admitted to hospitals in which there was less experience (mortality 1.7% versus 10.0%; adjusted OR 0.05, 95% CI 0.006-0.34). Among those with emergency hospitalizations for any reason or emergency hospitalizations due to SLE, lengths of stay and total costs did not differ between patients hospitalized at hospitals in which there was a high degree of experience and hospitals in which there was less experience. CONCLUSION: In-hospital mortality among patients with SLE is lower at hospitals in which there is more experience in caring for patients with SLE. This association is strongest among patients hospitalized on an emergency basis due to SLE.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Trends in the use of disease modifying antirheumatic medications in rheumatoid arthritis, 1980-1995: results from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Surveys.

OBJECTIVE: Current treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) emphasizes the early and consistent use of disease modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD). We studied how often these medications were used to treat patients with RA, and whether use of these medications has increased over time. METHODS: We used the National Ambulatory Medical Care Surveys to determine national probability estimates of the use of DMARD [hydroxychloroquine, intramuscular gold, auranofin, methotrexate (MTX), sulfasalazine, azathioprine, D-penicillamine, and cyclosporine] by patients with RA. The National Ambulatory Medical Care Surveys record information about treatments provided in outpatient settings by a nationally representative cross sectional sample of physicians. Estimates of the use of DMARD were based on the treatments reported on 502 visits by patients with RA in 1980-81, 339 visits by patients with RA in 1985, 386 visits by patients with RA in 1989-91, and 383 visits by patients with RA in 1993-95. RESULTS: DMARD were used in 30.3% of visits in 1980-81, 36.3% of visits in 1985, 24.9% of visits in 1989-91, and 43.6% of visits in 1993-95 (p for trend < 0.0001). Increased use of MTX accounted for most of the increased prevalence of DMARD use; MTX was used in 27.3% of visits in 1993-95. Use of DMARD increased in 1993-95 in all age, sex, and racial subgroups, and among visits reported by rheumatologists, but did not increase over time among visits reported by physicians other than rheumatologists. CONCLUSION: Use of DMARD in RA has increased in the recent past, but DMARD are currently used by fewer than 44% of patients with RA. Use of DMARD has not increased over time among patients of physicians other than rheumatologists.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1999

Psychosocial correlates of morbidity in women with systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVE: Modifiable psychosocial factors that are associated with health outcomes may provide new opportunities for treatment. We investigated the associations of various psychosocial factors with 3 measures of morbidity in women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). METHODS: We collected information on 16 social, psychological, behavioral, and medical care factors in a cross sectional survey of 100 women with SLE, and related these to measures of physical disability (assessed by the Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index), SLE activity (assessed by the Systemic Lupus Activity Measure), and cumulative organ damage (assessed by the SLICC/ACR Damage Index). RESULTS: In multivariate analyses, greater physical disability was significantly associated with higher depression scale scores and higher body mass indexes. Greater SLE activity was associated with less adequate social support. Greater cumulative organ damage was associated with lower self-esteem and a time orientation that favored the present over the future. Financial barriers to medical care, knowledge about SLE, health locus of control, marital status, and health behaviors including compliance with medications, smoking, alcohol use, and exercise, were not significantly associated with any measure of morbidity. CONCLUSION: Selected psychosocial factors are associated with morbidity in SLE, but differ with the measure of morbidity examined.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1999

Health-related quality of life in ankylosing spondylitis: a survey of 175 patients.

OBJECTIVE: To identify aspects of health-related quality of life that are most commonly affected in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS). METHODS: One hundred seventy-five participants in a longitudinal study of health status in AS completed a cross-sectional survey that asked them to rate the presence and importance of problems in 23 aspects of quality of life, including symptoms, disability, mood, relations with others, and concerns about treatments and the future. Participants also completed the Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36). RESULTS: The mean age of the participants was 51.1 years, and the mean duration of AS was 23.7 years; 119 (68%) were men. The most prevalent quality of life concerns included stiffness (90.2%), pain (83.1%), fatigue (62.4%), poor sleep (54.1%), concerns about appearance (50.6%), worry about the future (50.3%), and medication side effects (41%). Compared with those who had some college education, participants with 12 years of education or less were 2 to 4 times more likely to have problems or concerns with medication side effects, mobility, housework and self-care tasks, coping with illness, anxiety, payment for treatment, and relationships with spouses, family, and friends. Mean scores on the 8 domains of the SF-36 (range 0-100; higher scores indicate better function) ranged from 49 (energy/fatigue) to 77 (role limitations due to emotional problems). Patients with 12 years of education or less had significantly lower scores than those with some college on all domains except general health. CONCLUSIONS: In addition to pain and stiffness, fatigue and sleep problems are important concerns in patients with AS, while few reported problems with mood or social relationships. Less educated patients had lower quality of life in many different aspects.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed1999

Validity and sensitivity to change of spondylitis-specific measures of functional disability.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the construct validity and sensitivity to change of 2 spondylitis-specific measures of functional disability, the Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index modified for the spondyloarthropathies (HAQ-S) and the Dougados Functional Index, with 2 more generic instruments, the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ) and the Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales-2 (AIMS2), in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS). METHODS: Construct validity was assessed in 2 ways: (1) by comparisons of the cross sectional correlations between each functional disability instrument and 6 measures of physical impairment in 216 patients, and (2) by relating changes over time in the HAQ-S and the Functional Index with changes in patient reported pain and stiffness in 153 patients followed for at least 2 years. Sensitivity to change was measured from the responses of 155 patients who reported a qualitative change in the activity of their AS during followup. RESULTS: Most patients had mild functional disability, with median scores of 0.5 on the HAQ-S (possible range 0-3), 0.375 on the HAQ (possible range 0-3), 11 on the Functional Index (possible range 0-40), and 5 on the AIMS2 (possible range 0-60). Scores on the HAQ-S (R2 = 0.24) and the unmodified HAQ (R2 = 0.18) were more highly correlated with measures of physical impairment than were scores on the AIMS2 (R2 = 0.10) or the Functional Index (R2 = 0.09). Changes over time in the HAQ-S and HAQ were more closely related to changes in pain and stiffness than were changes in the Functional Index. The HAQ-S and HAQ were also more sensitive to change than the Functional Index. CONCLUSION: The HAQ-S showed greater construct validity and sensitivity to change than the Functional Index, but performed similarly to the unmodified HAQ.

Adult↗

PubMed1998

Evaluative laboratory testing practices of United States rheumatologists.

OBJECTIVE: Several laboratory tests can be used to monitor disease activity in patients with rheumatic diseases. We sought to learn how rheumatologists use evaluative laboratory tests in the care of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis. METHODS: We surveyed United States rheumatologists by mailed questionnaire. Of the 976 rheumatologists who received the questionnaire, 575 responded, for a response rate of 59%. RESULTS: Eighty-six percent of the respondents reported using either the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) or C-reactive protein level to monitor patients with RA, 92% used either the anti-DNA antibody level or complement C3 level to monitor patients with SLE, and 95% used either the ESR or ANCA levels to monitor patients with ANCA-associated vasculitis. The frequency of testing was distributed over a broad range, but testing was common. Testing on 50% of the visits or more was reported by 52% of respondents for RA, 59% of respondents for SLE, and 64% of respondents for ANCA-associated vasculitis. Between 7% and 11% of respondents reported testing patients on every visit, regardless of clinical disease activity. The majority of respondents reported not altering the treatment of clinically stable patients based on these test results. CONCLUSION: Evaluative laboratory testing is common, and is rarely used as an independent guide for treatment.

Antibodies, Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic↗