The Effects of Personal Disease Management on Insufficiency Levels and Quality of Life in Patients with Arthritis

WOS: 000283186700017Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of personal education on insufficiency levels and quality in of the patients with inflammatory and non-inflammatory arthritis, and to investigate whether its effect was similar in these two different disease models. Material and Methods: Female patients admitted to our out-patient rheumatology clinic in an university hospital and diagnosed with gonarthrosis (N=30) and rheumatoid arthritis (N=30) were included in this semi-experimental study conducted between September 2007-June 2008. A private questionnaire was applied to each patient to collect their socio-demographic and disease-related data, and each patient was given information about the characteristics, causes and treatments of the disease. Moreover, the importance of adaptation to the medical treatment, diet and regular exercise, and also ways to cope with the disease were told to each patient. Before and, two and six weeks after the education period, insufficiency levels and quality of life of the patients were investigated by applying a health assessment questionnaire (HAQ) and SF-36 quality of life assessment form. Data were analyzed by numbers, percentages, Student-t test, repeated measures of One-way ANOVA and repeated measures of Two-way ANOVA (SPSS 15.0). Results: There were no significant differences between HAQ and SF-36 data in two arthritis groups before education. However, HAQdata were significantly improved in both two arthritis groups after education (p<0.05). In addition, all parameters in gonarthrosis group, and all parameters except social function in rheumatoid arthritis group were significantly improved for SF-36 data after education (p