The assessment of the relationship between illness perception and utilisation of healthcare in patients with Sjogren's syndrome

Aim: The purpose of this cross-sectional study is to assess the relationship between illness perception and healthcare utilisation in patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) as a chronic disease. Material-Method: 50 patients (M/F: 4/46; mean age: 53,02±10,20 year) included in this cross-sectional study. Data were collected by face-to-face interview with a structured form. Utilisation of healthcare, self-reported disease activity and general health status, Illness Perception Questionnaire-Revise (IPQ-R) and Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HADS) were included in the form. Results: The number of visit was associated with self-reported disease activity and general health status (p<0.05). Yet, no significant relation was observed among IPQ-R subgroups and the number of visits (p>0.05). IPQ-R "Consequences" and IPQ-R "Emotional Representation" were positively correlated with both HADS-Depression Score and disease activity score (p<0.05). In addition, negative correlations were observed between HADS-Depression Score and IPR subgroups regarding IPQ-R "Personal Control", "Treatment Control" , "Ilness Coherence" (p<0.05). Conclusions: In pSS, healthcare utilisation was associated with self-reported disease activity and general health status. As the illness perception could be associated with disease activity and depression level in pSS, the use of PROs could provide helpful information in the management of chronic diseases. Keywords: Primary Sjögren Syndrome, Illness Perception, Depression