Gender-Based Frequency and Associated Disability of Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study

Objective: To determine the frequency and associated disability of rheumatoid arthritis in male and female patients Methodology: This was a cross sectional survey conducted at the National Institute of Rehabilitation Science, Pakistan Institute of Medical Science and Pakistan Railways Hospital for one year from February 2019 to February 2020. Study includes diagnosed cases of both genders with ages between 30 to 60 years and fulfilling the 1987 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria. Patients with disabilities due to other reasons were excluded. Sample size of the study was calculated to be 143 using Epi-tool. Sampling technique was non-probability purposive sampling technique. For this study WHODAS-2.0 screening tool was used. Results: Out of 143 patients, 52 (36.4%) were males and 91(63.6%) were females. The mean age of both males and females was 43.41 ± 8.605 SD. We found that 18 (34.6%) male patients presented with mild disability. While in females, 54 (59.3%), 32 (35.16%), 5 (5.49%), and 0 (0%) patients out of 91, reported with mild, moderate, severe, and extreme disabilities respectively. Conclusion: RA is more prevalent in females than in males with the majority of the patients reporting mild disability and more female patients disabled than men.