Symptoms experienced by patients with rheumatic diseases using tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) inhibitors and their effect on activities of daily living

This study was conducted to evaluate the symptoms experienced by patients with rheumatic diseases using tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α inhibitors and the effects of these symptoms on activities of daily living (ADL). This was a cross-sectional study conducted with patients with rheumatologic diagnoses using TNF-α inhibitors. Power analysis was performed to determine the sample size, and the study was completed with 83 patients who were willing to participate in the study and met the inclusion criteria. A questionnaire was used to collect data, a visual analog scale (VAS) was used to evaluate symptoms, and the Modified Barthel Index (MBI) was used for ADL. Scores obtained from MBI vary between 0 and 100, and high scores indicate that the individual’s independence increases. Descriptive statistics, and the Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used in data analysis and Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient was used to assess relationships between continuous variables. The mean age of the patients was 45.61 ± 12.43 years, 54.2% were male, 55.4% were diagnosed as having rheumatoid arthritis, and the mean duration of TNF-α inhibitor use was found as 8.08 ± 1.61 months. The mean scores of the symptoms experienced by the patients were 5.42 ± 3.10 for fatigue, 5.04 ± 3.01 for pain, 4.74 ± 3.51 for morning stiffness, 3.06 ± 2.73 for insomnia, 1.49 ± 2.47 for skin changes, 0.72 ± 1.79 for loss of appetite, 0.59 ± 1.44 for nausea-vomiting, and the mean MBI score was 98.03 ± 4.81. There was a negative correlation between the symptoms of pain, fatigue, morning stiffness, insomnia, nausea-vomiting, loss of appetite, skin changes, and mean MBI scores (p < 0.05). It was determined that patients with rheumatic diseases using TNF-α inhibitors experienced fatigue, pain, morning stiffness, insomnia, nausea-vomiting, loss of appetite, and skin changes, and that these problems were associated with ADL. It is recommended that the symptoms experienced by patients with rheumatic diseases and their effects on ADL be taken into consideration during follow-up.