Asessment of funtional and psychosocial stuation among patients with rheumatoid artrihitis

Aim: The purpose of this study was to assess functional and psychosocial situations among patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Materials and Methods: This study which is descriptive and cross sectional was conducted with 306 patients with rheumatoid arthritis at the rheumatology polyclinics in a university hospitals in Manisa. The data were collected by means of patient information form, Health Assessment Questionnaire and the Mental Health Continuum Short Form. Descriptive and correlation were used in statistical analysis. Results: The average age of the patients were 49.7±11.8 (23-60) years, 70.6% were female. It was found that the mean of Health Assessment Questionnaire score was 15.7±13.7 (0-60), the mean of the Mental Health Continuum Short Form score was 43.3±14.5 (1-70) among patients with rheumatoid arthritis. A negative correlation was defined between Health Assessment Questionnaire and the Mental Health Continuum Short Form (r=-0.39 p<0.05). Conclusion: The results of this study indicated that the patients who rheumatoid arthritis experience moderate level of functional, emotional and psychosocial situations. In addition, psychosocial situations was affected by functional situations. Key words: Rheumatoid arthritis, social well-being, psychological well-being, psychophysiologic disorders