Occupational Therapy Interventions for Adults with Rheumatoid Arthritis: An Appraisal of the Evidence

Abstract

This article identifies and critically appraises six systematic reviews published from 2007 to 2013 that assessed the efficacy of interventions used by occupational therapists for adults with rheumatoid arthritis. Results suggest there is sufficient evidence to support the use of therapeutic exercise, patient education through joint protection, and splinting for pain, inflammation, and grip strength but insufficient evidence to support the use of Tai Chi. To help guide clinical practice, future studies need to focus on the appropriate levels of intensity and combinations of therapeutic exercise, effective use of splinting, efficacy of specific education programs, and the use of Tai Chi as these relate to important patient outcomes.

Ergotherapie bei rheumatischen Erkrankungen

“…Multimodale rheumatologische Komplexbehandlungen zeigen für Patienten mit rheumatoider Arthritis eine signifikante Schmerzreduktion, Verbesserung der Funktionalität und eine Verlangsamung der Krankheitsprogredienz [30,31]. Weitere aktuelle Untersuchungen weisen starke Evidenzen bei psychoedukativen Interventionen, wie Gelenkschutzunterweisungen und Aufklärung der Patienten nach, die Autoren kritisieren jedoch, dass die Interventionen wenig berufsbezogen sind [31,32].…”

Team Approach: Role of Medical and Surgical Management in Rheumatoid Arthritis of the Hand and Wrist

“…Newly diagnosed patients benefit from therapy sessions to learn a selfmanagement program including joint protection principles, activity modification principles, range-of-motion exercises, and home modalities for pain relief. Joint protection principles include using the largest joint for the job, respecting pain and especially overusetype pain, balancing heavy and light activities, performing pain-free exercise, and avoiding positions that encourage joint deformity [54][55][56][57] . Joint protection strategies should be patient-specific to allow for greater behavior changes in the patient 58 .…”

The 2016 Eular Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Early Arthritis

“…Име-ются данные, что физиотерапия положительно влияет на функциональный статус пациентов, но не на активность заболевания [102], а физические упражнения улучшают функцию кисти [103,104].…”