Effect of continuous functional exercise guidance on quality of life of patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Abstract

Objective To explore the effect of continuous functional exercise guidance on the quality of life of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Methods One hundred and twenty patients with rheumatoid arthritis admitted to the first Department of Rheumatology and Immunology of Shengjing Hospital Affiliated to China Medical University from June to December 2018 were divided into either an observation group or a control group, with 60 cases in each group. Both groups were given health guidance at the time of discharge, and the patients were asked to have follow-up visits on time. The observation group additionally received continuous functional exercise guidance after discharge. At 3 months after discharge, the self-management ability of patients was evaluated using the chronic disease self-management behavior scale, and the quality of life was evaluated using the rheumatoid arthritis patient quality of life scale. The control of clinical symptoms was also evaluated. The t-test was used to compare the differences in the above indicators between the two groups. Results The scores of exercise, cognitive symptom management, and communication with doctors in the observation group were 9.96±1.14, 8.97±1.34, and 6.32±1.28, respectively, which were significantly higher than those in the control group (8.93±1.18, 7.96±1.32, and 5.44±1.51; t=4.863, 4.159, and 3.442; P<0.001, <0.001, and =0.001, respectively). Three months after discharge, the time of morning stiffness in the observation group was significantly shorter [(1.05±0.47) h vs (1.34±0.56) h, t=3.073, P=0.002], the score of joint pain was significantly lower [(1.34±0.75) vs (2.48± 0.89), t=7.587, P<0.001], and the number of joints with pain was significantly fewer than those in the control group [(3.74±1.31) vs (5.28±1.61), t=5.677, P<0.001]. After 3 months of intervention, the scores of quality of life improvement in psychological field, physiological field, social field, health self-awareness, general health status, and quality of life in the observation group were 3.72±1.15, 6.20±2.24, 5.43±1.37, 3.53±1.25, and 5.72±2.26, respectively, which were significantly better than those in the control group (1.59±0.57, 3.06±1.32, 3.21±1.08, 1.35±0.49, and 2.14±1.15, respectively; t=12.855, 9.355, 11.559, 12.577, and 10.936, respectively; P<0.001 for all). Conclusion Continuous functional guidance can enhance the self-management ability of patients with rheumatoid arthritis and help to control their clinical symptoms and improve their quality of life. Key words: Continuous function guidance; Rheumatoid arthritis; Self-management ability; Quality of life