Resiliency As a Predictor of Depressive Symptoms in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis

Matt Woo¹, Nadil Zeiadin¹, Hayley Yurgan², Dean Tripp³ and Mala Joneja¹, ¹Medicine, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada, ²Psychology, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada, ³Psychology, Anaesthesiology, Urology, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada

Meeting: 2015 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting

Date of first publication: September 29, 2015

Keywords: depression, Disease Activity, psychosocial factors, resiliency and rheumatoid arthritis (RA)

Session Information

Date: Monday, November 9, 2015

Title: Rheumatoid Arthritis - Clinical Aspects Poster II

Session Type: ACR Poster Session B

Session Time: 9:00AM-11:00AM

Background/Purpose: Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, systemic, autoimmune disease affecting 0.5 – 1% of the adult population that leads to a progressive decline in functional status¹. Psychological distress, including depression, is common among patients with rheumatoid arthritis and a predictor of functional outcome². Resiliency, the presence of effective coping and adaptation when faced with loss, hardship or adversity has been shown to be a protective factor in chronic disease, including autoimmune disorders such as SLE³. In this study, we aimed to assess predictors of depressive symptoms in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Methods: Twenty-one patients with a diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis from a single center in Kingston, Ontario were evaluated with a demographics questionnaire, a 9-item self-reported depression scale (Patient Health Questionnaire 9, PHQ-9), a 4-item resilience scale (Brief Resilience Coping Scale, BRCS), as well as a physician administered measure of objective disease activity (DAS-28). Multiple regression analysis was conducted to assess predictors of depressive symptoms.

Results: The sample had low to moderate disease activity (M = 3.10, SD = 1.56). The mean PHQ-9 score was 4.09 (SD = 4.03) and the mean resilience score was 13.86 (SD = 4.07). Disease activity (β = .38) and resilience (β = -.47) were significant predictors of depressive symptoms, R²= .73, adjusted R² = .64, F(5, 15) = 8.20, p < .01. Disease activity is a positive predictor and resiliency is a negative predictor of depressive symptoms.

Conclusion: Resilience had the greatest regression weight, implicating resilience as an important target for psychological intervention. Assessment of resilience in patients with rheumatoid arthritis may allow for the identification of patients at risk for psychosocial distress and allow for the implementation of targeted therapies to improve functional status.

References:

¹Pincus T, Callahan LF, Sale WG, Brooks AL, Payne LE, Vaughn WK (1984). Severe functional declines, work disability, and increased mortality in seventy-five rheumatoid arthritis patients studied over nine years. Arthritis Rheum, 27, 864–872.

²Matcham F, Rayner L, Steer S, Hotopf M (2013) The prevalence of depression in rheumatoid arthritis: A systemic review and meta-analysis. Rheumatology, 52, 2136-2148.

³Pousa Fara DA, Revoredo LS, Vilar MJ, Chaves Maia (2014) Resilience and treatment adhesion in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. The Open Rheumatology Journal, 8, 1-8.

Disclosure: M. Woo, None; N. Zeiadin, None; H. Yurgan, None; D. Tripp, None; M. Joneja, None.

To cite this abstract in AMA style:

Woo M, Zeiadin N, Yurgan H, Tripp D, Joneja M. Resiliency As a Predictor of Depressive Symptoms in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis [abstract]. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2015; 67 (suppl 10). https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/resiliency-as-a-predictor-of-depressive-symptoms-in-patients-with-rheumatoid-arthritis/. Accessed .

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