Arthritis Care & Research最新文献

Objective: Few studies have explored whether the involvement of patients in shared decision-making (SDM) is beneficial to the management of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Therefore, this study investigated the relationship between patient participation in SDM and their trust in physicians using data from the Trust Measurement in Physicians and Patients With SLE (TRUMP2-SLE) study.

Methods: Data regarding the nine-item Japanese version of the Shared Decision-Making Questionnaire (SDM-Q-9) scores, Trust in Physician Scale (TIPS) scores, and Abbreviated Wake Forest Physician Trust Scale (A-WFPTS) scores for interpersonal trust in a physician and trust in the medical profession were collected from patients with SLE who visited the outpatient clinics of five facilities in Japan through a self-administered questionnaire. The relationships among these scores were analyzed by general linear models with cluster-robust variance.

Results: This study included 433 patients with SLE. The median baseline TIPS and A-WFPTS (attending physician version) scores were 82 (73-93) and 80 (70-95), respectively. A higher baseline SDM-Q-9 score was correlated with an increase in the TIPS score at one year (coefficient per 10-point [pt] increase, 0.94 pts, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.16-1.72). A higher baseline SDM-Q-9 score was correlated with a higher A-WFPTS score for interpersonal trust (coefficient per 10-pt increase, 2.20 pts, 95% CI 1.44-2.96). The baseline SDM-Q-9 score was also correlated with an increase in the general physician version of the A-WFPTS score at one year (coefficient per 10-pt increase, 1.29 pts, 95% CI 0.41-2.18).

Conclusion: Engagement of patients with SLE in SDM elevates their trust in the attending physicians and health care providers, potentially enhancing doctor-patient relationships and overall health care trust.

Objective: Despite the recognized benefits of collecting rheumatoid arthritis (RA) outcomes measures, their use in routine care is inconsistent. Using the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR), we conducted semi-structured interviews with United States rheumatologists and practice personnel to assess workflows, opportunities, and challenges in collecting RA outcome measures. Using insights from interviews, we developed the RA Measures Toolkit to enhance their utilization in clinical practice.

Methods: We invited 138 RISE registry practices and 5 academic medical centers with ≥ 30 patients eligible for RA outcome measures to participate in the study. Practices were classified based on their performance in quality payment programs. Recorded interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed thematically using deductive and inductive techniques. The findings were used to create the RA Measures Toolkit.

Results: We conducted 20 interviews with 38 participants across 20 practices. Key themes within the CFIR domains highlighted the challenges and best practices in RA outcome measure collection and included: 1) Process: the variability in practices' use of RA outcome measures and the importance of streamlined workflows, 2) Intervention: challenges of integrating PROs into electronic health records (EHRs), and 3) Individual characteristics: importance of clinic culture around quality improvement. Using this data, we developed the RA Toolkit, a multimedia online resource, featuring guidelines, best practices, and educational resources to improve the efficiency of current workflows and to enhance patient care.

Conclusion: This study identifies critical gaps in the collection of RA outcome measures in U.S. rheumatology practices and provides actionable recommendations and resources to address challenges via the RA Toolkit.

Objective: Treat-to-target (T2T) is recommended in the management of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) but its implementation is suboptimal. We aimed to identify interventional strategies targeted at improving T2T implementation in RA by systematically reviewing published evidence on barriers to, facilitators of, and interventions to support T2T implementation.

Methods: Systematic and scoping literature searches in PubMed/MEDLINE®, BIOSIS Previews®, Derwent Drug File, Embase®, EMCare®, International Pharmaceutical Abstracts, and SciSearch® were conducted to identify barriers/facilitators and interventions relating to T2T implementation in RA. The quality of included studies was assessed using Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) checklists. Data related to barriers/facilitators and interventions were extracted, grouped, and summarized descriptively, and a narrative synthesis was generated.

Results: In total, 146 articles were analyzed, of which 123 (84%) included ≥50% of the items assessed by CASP checklists. Of the 146 studies, 76 evaluated T2T barriers and facilitators, from which 329 relevant statements were identified and regrouped into 18 target areas, including: healthcare professionals' (HCPs') or patients' knowledge or perceptions; patient-HCP communication or alignment; and time or resources. Overall, 56 interventions were identified from 70 studies across the 18 target areas; 54% addressed disease activity or patient-reported outcome assessments. Of the 56 interventions identified, 36 improved T2T implementation and/or patient outcomes in RA.

Conclusion: Despite long-established T2T recommendations, there remain many barriers to its implementation. Interventions to improve T2T should be developed further and assessed, with a particular focus on tailoring them to individual countries, regions, and healthcare settings.

Epidemiology provides a powerful framework for characterizing exposure–disease relationships, but its utility for making causal inferences is limited because epidemiologic data are observational in nature and subject to biases stemming from undetected confounding variables and reverse causation. Mendelian randomization (MR) is an increasingly popular method used to circumvent these limitations. MR uses genetic variants, or instruments, as a natural experiment to proxy an exposure, thus allowing estimation of causal effects upon an outcome that are minimally affected by the usual biases present in epidemiologic studies. Notably, MR relies on three core assumptions related to the selection of the genetic instruments, and adherence to these assumptions must be carefully evaluated to assess the validity of the causal estimates. The goal of this review is to provide readers with a basic understanding of MR studies and how to read and evaluate them. Specifically, we outline the basics of how MR analysis is conducted, the assumptions underlying instrument selection, and how to assess the quality of MR studies.

Objective: Exposure to fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) has been linked to many diseases. However, it remains unclear which PM_2.5 chemical components for these diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis (RA), are more harmful. This study aimed to assess potential associations between PM_2.5 components and RA and quantify the individual effects of each chemical component on RA risk.

Methods: An open cohort of 11,696,930 Canadian adults was assembled using Ontario administrative health data from January 2007 onward. Individuals were followed until RA onset, death, emigration from Ontario, or the end of the study (December 2019). Incident RA cases were defined by physician billing and hospitalization discharge diagnostic codes. The average levels of PM_2.5 components (ammonium, black carbon, mineral dust, nitrate, organic matter, sea salt, and sulfate) for 5 years before cohort entry were assigned to participants based on residential postal codes. A quantile g-computation and Cox proportional hazard models for time to RA onset were developed for the mixture of PM_2.5 components and environmental overall PM_2.5, respectively.

Results: We identified 67,676 new RA cases across 130,934,256 person-years. The adjusted hazard ratios for the time to RA onset were 1.027 and 1.023 (95% confidence intervals 1.021-1.033 and 1.017-1.029) per every decile increase in exposures to all seven components and per 1 μg/m³ increase in the overall PM_2.5, respectively. Ammonium contributed the most to RA onset in the seven components.

Conclusion: Exposure to PM_2.5 components was modestly associated with RA risk. Public health efforts focusing on specific components (eg, ammonium) may be a more efficient way to reduce RA burden.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the association between exposure to particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ≤10 μm (PM₁₀) and the development of giant cell arteritis (GCA) and its ischemic complications.

Methods: This was case-crossover study on consecutive patients who received a diagnosis of GCA in three hospitals in northern Italy between 2013 and 2021. The PM₁₀ hourly and daily average concentrations, collected in the Italian monitoring network and archived by Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e la Ricerca Ambientale, were determined using European reference. We used a Bayesian hierarchical model to determine patients' daily exposures to them. We employed conditional logistic regression to estimate the effect of exposure on GCA symptoms onset or ischemic complications.

Results: We included 232 patients. A positive association was observed between exposure to PM₁₀ and GCA risk, with an incremental odd of 27.1% (95% confidence interval 5.8-52.6) for every 10-μg/m³ increase in PM₁₀ concentration within a 60-day period. We did not find any significant association for shorter periods or with ischemic complications. Subgroup analysis found a significantly higher incremental risk at a 60-day lag for patients ≥70 years old. Comparing patients who were chronically exposed to high PM₁₀ levels (26.9 ± 13.8 μg/m³) to those who were not (11.9 ± 7.9 μg/m³) revealed that only in the former group was there an association between GCA onset and increased PM₁₀ levels in the preceding 60 days.

Conclusion: Exposure to environmental PM₁₀ in the preceding 60 days seems to be associated with an increased risk of developing GCA, especially in older individuals with prolonged exposure to high levels of air pollution.