Patient experiences of physical activity and exercise in rheumatoid arthritis

Canning, J., Williams, R. and de Souza, S. (2023) Patient experiences of physical activity and exercise in rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatology Advances in Practice, 7(1), rkac098. (doi: 10.1093/rap/rkac098) (PMID:36699547) (PMCID:PMC9870703)

Abstract

Lay Summary: What does this mean for patients? Physical activity and exercise have been shown to have many benefits for people living with RA. These include improvements in symptoms associated with RA, such as pain, stiffness and fatigue. Participating in physical activity and exercise has also been shown to improve cardiovascular health and overall quality of life and is therefore an important part of disease management. Despite this, physical activity levels in people with RA are notably lower than those seen in people without RA, meaning that many RA patients do not experience the associated health benefits. By listening to the experiences of those with RA, researchers have been able to identify many of the reasons or barriers that make it harder for people with RA to exercise regularly. These include lack of professional support, feeling embarrassed or worrying about making symptoms worse. These important patient insights have also allowed researchers to understand other factors that support physical activity and exercise among people with RA, such as encouragement from family and friends and enjoying the feeling of achieving exercise-related goals. This paper includes the personal accounts of three patients with RA and their experiences with physical activity and exercise at different times: during childhood, during a flare and during a pandemic. Exploring the experiences of a wide range of patients is crucial in guiding the development of appropriate exercise-related advice and programmes that will support physically active lifestyles in this group of patients.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Canning, Jordan
• Authors: Canning, J., Williams, R., and de Souza, S.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Health & Wellbeing > General Practice and Primary Care
• Journal Name: Rheumatology Advances in Practice
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• ISSN: 2514-1775
• ISSN (Online): 2514-1775
• Published Online: 24 January 2023
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2023 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Rheumatology Advances in Practice 7(1): rkac098
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License