REACTION AND THINKING ABOUT SYMPTOMS BY RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS PATIENTS: HELP SEEKING DELAY

Dr Arup Mahapatra; Dr Basanta Kumar Behera; Dr Vishwanath Ghoshal; Dr Bhaskar Thakur

Volume : VIII, Issue : I, January - 2019

REACTION AND THINKING ABOUT SYMPTOMS BY RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS PATIENTS: HELP SEEKING DELAY

Dr Arup Mahapatra, Dr Basanta Kumar Behera, Dr Vishwanath Ghoshal, Dr Bhaskar Thakur

Abstract :

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic systemic autoimmune inflammatory disease that affects mainly the small joints of the hands and feet. RA is one of the most common inflammatory joint diseases and causes premature mortality, disability and compromised quality of life. RA is widely prevalent throughout the world. RA affects approximately 1% of the adult population in general, but this percentage increases with age. Women suffer three times more often than men in rheumatoid arthritis.

The authors discuss one class of barriers in help seeking of RA which are due to reaction to symptoms and thinking about symptoms before seeing the doctor.

Aims & Objectives

The aims and objectives of the study are to identify the time interval between onset of symptom and presentation to a health care provider (rheumatologist) among early RA patients and to analyze delay in help seeking due reaction to symptoms and thinking about symptoms by patients with RA before seeing the doctor.

Materials & Methods

The study tool consisted of a predesigned pretested questionnaire. Data collected were fed in Microsoft Excel and the analysis was carried out using standard statistical software Stata 15.1.

Results

52% of participants after development of symptoms ignored them and 70% panicked. 37% of 250 participants thought that symptoms are stress related. Reaction of panicking on development of symptoms was found to be statistically significant (p≤0.05). There is a significant association between thought that symptoms are injury related and stress with treatment delay (p≤0.05).

Conclusion

The RA patients may be educated to do away with unwarranted reaction to symptoms and to dispel wrong thinking about symptoms of RA. The patients should promptly consult GP/rheumatologist as and when symptoms of RA arise.