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Impaired functional status in primary Sjogrens syndrome
Arthritis Care & Research , 05/31/2012
Hackett KL et al. – Primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) patients experience significant functional disability compared to age–matched healthy controls. Impaired function is associated with reduced quality of life and symptoms such as pain, fatigue and depression as well as disease activity, illustrating the importance of optimal management of all aspects of the disease.
Methods- 69 pSS patients from a specialist clinical service were assessed for their functional ability (Improved Health Assessment Questionnaire (Improved HAQ)), dryness, pain, overall pSS–related symptom burden; systemic disease activity; levels of fatigue, daytime somnolence, anxiety and depression symptoms, quality of life, systemic inflammation (Erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C–reactive protein (CRP)).
- Data were compared to 69 healthy volunteers matched for age and sex.
- pSS patients experience greater functional impairment than controls (Improved HAQ total scores (mean±SD): PSS=24±25 vs. controls=9±19; p=0.0002) across all domains of activity.
- In pSS, functional impairment is significantly associated with physical fatigue (p<0.0001; R2=0.3), pain (p<0.0001; R2=0.3), depression (p<0.0001; R2=0.3), total symptom burden (p<0.0001; R2=0.3), systemic disease activity (p=0.002; R2=0.15), quality of life (p<0.0001; R2=0.3), dryness (p=0.002; R2=0.12), daytime somnolence (p=0.02, R2=0.08) anxiety score (p=0.03, R2=0.07), and CRP (p=0.04, R2=0.06).
- Only CRP is independently associated with functional impairment (β=0.38; p=0.025).
