Behavioral Aspects of Arthritis and Rheumatic Disease Self-Management.

TREATMENT of arthritis; RHEUMATISM treatment; SELF-management (Psychology); EXERCISE therapy; STRESS management

Chronic diseases such as arthritis and related conditions have no ‘cure’, and thus require ongoing management. The long term nature of chronic disease gives the individual a crucial role, if not the most crucial role, in managing their condition. Day-to-day self-management is extremely important in achieving optimal health outcomes, and indeed, people with arthritis use a variety of strategies to relieve symptoms or manage disease consequences. This review identifies and discusses 6 different domains of arthritis self-management behaviors: medical management; joint protection strategies; physical activity and exercise; topical applications; complementary and alternative strategies; and stress and mind/body practices. Conceptualizing arthritis self-management in this manner enables a discussion of a range of practices that may be used to manage arthritis conditions. The literature on several established arthritis self-management programs that are designed to improve either self-care and/or exercise behaviors is also reviewed. Despite evidence of cost containment and improved health outcomes, these programs reach only a small percentage of people with arthritis who may benefit from them. Clinical intervention for people with arthritis may be enhanced if self-management is approached from a broad perspective and, if established, self-management programs are integrated into clinical interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Disease Management & Health Outcomes is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)