Abstract
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic destructive type of arthritis. It has a high prevalence in females as compared to the male population globally. It mainly affects the synovium of peripheral joints and leads to the destruction of joints with time. Patients with RA usually have a high burden of inflammation which may lead to certain physical disabilities and debilitating effects on mental health and cognitive ability. The question we investigated here in this systematic review is how changing lifestyles and increasing exercise or physical activities affects one's cognitive abilities. This article adheres to preferred reporting items for systematic review and meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. We used different databases such as PubMed, MEDLINE, and ScienceDirect to find relevant articles. To ensure the quality of the finally selected 12 studies, we followed different quality appraisal tools. Based on our review, we found out that increasing physical activities and aerobic exercises positively increase overall well-being and decrease the inflammatory load, which will ultimately positively impact cognitive function in this subgroup of patients. We also discover certain key players affecting motivation, perception, and adherence to physical activities. We encourage future studies to be done on this topic to help in increasing quality of life and increasing independence in this group of patients. Counseling and addressing patient concerns are very important and keep disease activity well controlled so that physical activities become feasible.
Highlights
BackgroundThe worldwide prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) was estimated as 0.24 percent based upon the Global Burden of Disease 2010 Study [1]
A review study in Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients showed that patients with chronic RA underperform in cognitive ability tests compared to the healthy general population [8]
The medical subject headings (MeSH) terms and keywords used in the search strategy were "exercise," "physical activity," "aerobic exercises," "rheumatoid arthritis," "cognitive ability, "prevention and control," and" therapeutic/exercise'
Summary
The worldwide prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) was estimated as 0.24 percent based upon the Global Burden of Disease 2010 Study [1]. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a type of inflammatory arthritis that primarily affects peripheral joints' synovium [4] It is the most common inflammatory arthropathy globally, which leads to joint destruction and the inability to perform functions properly. RA is diagnosed by the presence of anti-citrulline protein antibodies (anti-ccp) and rheumatoid factor (RF) in the serum [5]. Chronic inflammatory disorders such as RA has a higher prevalence of cognitive disabilities than the general population [6]. A review study in RA patients showed that patients with chronic RA underperform in cognitive ability tests compared to the healthy general population [8]
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