Nearly four in 10 patients with osteoarthritis (OA) or rheumatoid arthritis (RA) also experience anxiety, depression, or fibromyalgia, according to a study published on July 16 in ACR Open Rheumatology.
The study, conducted by Dr. Juan Schmukler and colleagues from Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, examined the prevalence of these conditions in 361 patients with OA and 488 patients with RA who were receiving routine care.
The findings revealed that 40.4% of OA patients and 36.3% of RA patients screened positive for anxiety, depression, or fibromyalgia. Furthermore, 8% of OA patients and 7% of RA patients tested positive for all three conditions.
Patients with any of these conditions had significantly poorer overall health status, as measured by the Routine Assessment of Patient Index Data 3 (RAPID3).
The odds ratios for poorer health status ranged from 2.6 to 35.8, indicating a strong association between these mental health issues and worse physical health outcomes in both OA and RA patients.
The study suggests that integrating screening for anxiety, depression, and fibromyalgia into routine clinical care using the Multidimensional Health Assessment Questionnaire (MDHAQ) could help health professionals better understand patient status, prognosis, and treatment responses.
It’s important to note that one of the study’s authors has ties to the pharmaceutical industry, and another holds a copyright and trademark on the MDHAQ and RAPID3.
This disclosure highlights the need for transparency in research to ensure that findings are interpreted within the appropriate context.
If you care about mental health, please read studies about 6 foods you can eat to improve mental health, and B vitamins could help prevent depression and anxiety.
For more information about mental health, please see recent studies about how dairy foods may influence depression risk, and results showing Omega-3 fats may help reduce depression.
The research findings can be found in ACR Open Rheumatology.
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