The Assessment of the Quality of Life in Patients with Rheumatoid Foot

Background: The negative effects of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are multi-dimensional. Foot deformities lead to disability, pain, and impaired quality of life. Objective: Identifying the difficulties in functioning rheumatoid foot and assessing the quality of life in this aspect. Materials and Methods: The material included 50 patients of Rheumatology Policlinic of the Central Clinical Hospital of Interior Affairs in Warsaw and a matched control group of 50 individuals without RA. The degree of foot joint damage was assessed using the Manchester scale, lower limb movement and quality of life using the American Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Society Score and HAQ. Results: The duration of symptoms was 16.0 ± 8.9 years. High activity of RA measured by the DAS was observed in 20% of patients, moderate in 26%, and low in 54%. The most common foot deformities were: hammer toes (82%), longitudinal flat feet (74%), and hyperkeratosis (56%). The least frequent were: stiff toe (38%) and overlapping fingers (28%). In the RA group, the outcomes of the FAOS questionnaire were statistically significantly worse than in the control group in all categories (p<0.001). The worst-rated domain was the sport and recreation subscale (median 55.0), the best daily activity (median 86.8). The strongest relationship was demonstrated between the FAOS and HAQ indices. Spearman's HAQ correlation coefficient with the ADL subscale was r=-0.85, p<0.001; with the QOL, sport/recreation and pain subscales moderate, it was r=-0.72; r= 0.71, p <0.001. Conclusion: Lower limb movement function and quality of life are worse in RA patients; pain accompanies climbing and descending stairs; running and jumping require effort.