Satisfaction and discontent of Polish patients with biological therapy of rheumatic diseases: results of a multi-center questionnaire study

Abstract

ObjectivesBiologics are medications widely applied in the management of inflammatory rheumatic diseases. The drugs were found to be effective but their application is associated with some disadvantages. Medication with biologics is relatively expensive, and in Poland, it is carried out in specialized centers. The study was designed to evaluate various aspects of satisfaction and dissatisfaction of Polish patients treated with biologics.Material and methodsAn anonymous questionnaire was distributed in 23 Polish rheumatological centers involved in the treatment; 1212 returned questionnaires were used for analysis. Responses were received from 606 patients with rheumatoid arthritis, 427 with ankylosing spondylitis, 117 psoriatic arthritis, and 62 adult patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (in whom administration of the drugs had been introduced before they were 18 years old). The investigated group constituted about one-fifth of all rheumatic patients on biologics in Poland.ResultsA beneficial or very beneficial influence of the medication on the state of physical health was found mostly in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (51.3 and 30.5%) and ankylosing spondylitis (51.0 and 36.8%). Family life was improved by the treatment especially in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (40.7 and 35.6% beneficial and very beneficial, respectively), sleep quality and sexual life mostly in those with ankylosing spondylitis (beneficial/very beneficial influence 41.5/38.4, and 38.7/23.9, respectively). There was a rather small influence of biological treatment on the financial situation of the patients. In general, satisfaction with the treatment was evaluated as positive or very positive in 88% of all investigated patients.In a significant part of the patients, transportation to the medical center was considered as a disadvantage of the treatment. About one-third of the patients considered laboratory and imaging tests to be done before initiation of the medication as a difficulty, and for about 40% waiting time for qualification for the medication was a significant disadvantage. The route of drug administration was without importance for 4/5 of the patients.ConclusionsSumming up, the results were similar in the patients suffering from various diseases although those with psoriatic arthritis felt the highest satisfaction (possibly due to the positive aesthetic effect), and those with ankylosing spondylitis had significant improvement in sexual life (probably due to younger age). Relatively low satisfaction was found in patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis. There was a small influence of medication on financial status of the patients. Application of biologics has few disadvantages and most of them are associated with the organization of health services (waiting time for the tests, transportation to the medical centers).

Frequency of Proteus Mirabilis Infection in Rheumatoid Arthritis

“…RA is still one of the chronic inflammatory disease with unidentified etiologies. The associated risk factors are: tyrosine phosphatase gene, HLA-DR genes, genes of cytokine coding, peptidylarginine deiminase gene 16 . There are several types of herbal treatments which can be used in local Australian traditional medicinal systems to manage RA and inflammation 17 .…”

Perceived treatment satisfaction in patients with systemic rheumatic diseases treated with biologic therapies: results of a self-reported survey

“…Satisfaction and discontent of patients with rheumatic diseases from their treatment with biological drugs were assessed using a questionnaire designed by Kotulska A, Kucharz E, and their colleagues. The researchers used the questionnaire to assess patient satisfaction in specific aspects of human activity: physical condition, emotional state, financial condition, professional performance, family and sexual life, and free time [ 10 ].…”

“…In this regard, validated structured instruments may not be able to capture the several aspects across the whole spectrum of SRDs. Previous studies have addressed patients’ perceptions and satisfaction in persons with rheumatoid arthritis [ 16 ] and other inflammatory arthropathies [ 10 , 17 , 18 ] treated with subcutaneous biological drugs. However, the level of satisfaction of both intravenous and subcutaneous targeted therapies in individuals suffering not only from inflammatory arthropathies but also from more systemic autoimmune disorders, such as SLE, SSc, and systemic vasculitis, has not been evaluated.…”

“…Over the last two decades, the management of SRDs has been revolutionized by the introduction of biological therapies [8][9][10]. The administration of these drugs has led to an unquestionable improvement in the overall management across the whole spectrum of subjects with SRDs including not only patients with inflammatory arthritis but also individuals suffering from systemic vasculitis [11], systemic sclerosis (SSc) [12], and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).…”

Identifying Patient Access Barriers for Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha Inhibitor Treatments in Rheumatoid Arthritis in Five Central Eastern European Countries

“…References of full text papers were also reviewed by snowball method, resulting an additional five hits. The 32 potentially relevant full text papers contained 15 articles (Brennan et al, 2004;Kobelt and Kasteng, 2009;Orlewska et al, 2011;Balanescu and Wiland, 2013;Laki et al, 2013;Pavelka et al, 2013;Peńtek et al, 2014;Putrik et al, 2014b;Gulacsi et al, 2015;Gulacsi et al, 2017;Nikiphorou et al, 2017;Codreanu et al, 2018;Kotulska et al, 2018;Batko et al, 2019) mentioning at least one barrier. Full extraction of these papers to identify potential additional access barriers confirmed the completeness of the draft interview guide.…”