Comparison of sociodemographic, socioeconomic, health status and health resources consumption between participants with and without RMD: adjusted analysis
| HRQoL and physical function | RMD n=3195 | Non-RMD n=682 | β estimates | 95% CI | Adjusted p Value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EQ5D (0–1) | 0.7±0.3 | 0.9±0.1 | −0.09 | (−0.13 to −0.05) | <0.001* | |
| HAQ (0–3) | 0.4±0.7 | 0.1±0.2 | 0.13 | (0.08 to 0.17) | <0.001* | |
| Mental health | RMD | Non-RMD | OR | 95% CI | Adjusted p value | |
| Anxiety (yes vs no) | 600 (16.7%) | 63 (5.3%) | 3.5 | (1.4 to 8.0) | 0.006* | |
| Depression (yes vs no) | 349 (8.3%) | 29 (1.3%) | 1.9 | (0.8 to 4.6) | 0.173 | |
| Healthcare resources consumption | RMD | Non-RMD | OR | 95% CI | Adjusted p value | |
| Physician visits in the past 12 months | 0.010* | |||||
| General practitioners | 2661 (78.8%) | 502 (71.5%) | 0.5 | (0.3 to 0.8) | <0.001* | |
| Rheumatology visits | 206 (4.6%) | 11 (1.0%) | 30.5 | (7.4 to 126.2) | 0.010* | |
| Orthopaedic visits | 475 (14.9%) | 46 (6.5%) | 3.2 | (1.3 to 7.8) | 0.825 | |
| Other visits | 1758 (57.1%) | 347 (53.5%) | 0.9 | (0.6 to 1.5) | ||
| Healthcare resources consumption | RMD | Non-RMD | β estimates | 95% CI | Adjusted p value | |
| Number of physician appointments in the past 12 months | ||||||
| General practitioners | 2.5±5.9 | 4.0±19.0 | −4.01 | (−11.37 to 3.34) | 0.285 | |
| Rheumatology appointments | 0.1±0.8 | 0.0±0.1 | 0.08 | (0.05 to 0.11) | <0.001* | |
| Orthopaedic appointments | 0.4±1.4 | 0.1±0.4 | 0.27 | (0.10 to 0.43) | 0.002* | |
| Other appointments | 1.9±8.0 | 1.5±1.5 | 0.01 | (−0.47 to 0.50) | 0.961 | |
| Healthcare resources consumption | RMD | Non-RMD | OR | 95% CI | Adjusted p value | |
| Home care in the past 12 months | 100 (2.7%) | 5 (0.1%) | 13.2 | (2.7 to 63.6) | 0.001* | |
| Hospitalisations in the past 12 months | 324 (11.4%) | 53 (5.5%) | 2.5 | (1.1 to 5.8) | 0.027* | |
| Early retirement due to disease | 488 (30.9%) | 33 (22.0%) | 2.3 | (0.9 to 6.0) | 0.101 | |
| Absent from work due to disease in the past 12 months | 323 (29.9%) | 76 (24.8%) | 1.7 | (0.8 to 3.5) | 0.163 | |
| Healthcare resources consumption | RMD | Non-RMD | β estimates | 95% CI | Adjusted p value | |
| Number of days absent from work due to disease in the past 12 months | 31.5±83.9 | 22.5±14.1 | 14.11 | (−4.72 to 32.94) | 0.141 | |
Sample size is not constant due to missing data in RMD: EQ5D (n=3168), Early retirement due to disease (n=1419), absent from work due to disease in the past 12 months (n=1010), number of days absent from work due to disease in the past 12 months (n=318).
Non-RMD: EQ5D (n=678), Early retirement due to disease (n=142), absent from work due to disease in the past 12 months (n=359), number of days absent from work due to disease in the past 12 months (n=75).
p Values were adjusted for age, gender, Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (North, Centre, Alentejo, Algarve, Lisbon, Madeira and the Azores), years of education, work status, household income, alcohol intake, physical exercise, Body Mass Index and number of comorbidities. For continuous variables, a multivariable regression was used to assess the differences between the groups (individuals with Rheumatic Diseases and those without Rheumatic Diseases). The estimated values were obtained considering study design.
*Adjusted p values <0.05.
EQ5D, European Quality of Life questionnaire five dimensions three levels; HAQ, Health Assessment Questionnaire; HRQoL, health-related quality of life; RMD, rheumatic and musculoskeletal disease.