Table 1

Outline of the SPARRA questionnaire

Per symptom (see right), the following questions are asked:

  1. Over the past month how many days of the month have you had (symptom)?

  2. Over the past month how much (symptom) have you had?

  3. What impact has this (symptom) had on your ability to carry out daily activities (eg, work, household chores, childcare, social activities)?

  4. Where did you feel the [symptoms 1 to 9]

Answer categories:

  1. 0 days, 1–5 days, 6–16 days, 16–30 days

  2. None, mild, moderate, severe

  3. No impact, small impact, moderate impact, large impact

  4. Hand (one or both), arm (one or both), foot (one or both), leg (one or both)

  1. Joint pain (symptoms)

  2. Joint swelling

  3. Joint stiffness

  4. Burning sensations

  5. Tingling sensations

  6. Numbness

  7. Changes in skin colour over joints

  8. Muscle cramps

  9. Weakness or loss of strength

  10. Fatigue

  11. Emotional distress

  12. Concentration difficulties

  13. Sleep problems

Additional questions:

  • Description of joint pain (burning, sharp/stabbing, aching, other)

  • Movement of joint pain (no, arms to legs, legs to arms, one side to the other)

  • Presence of morning stiffness (no, <1 hour, 1–2 hours, all morning)

Rate the average joint pain over the last month in different body areas:

  • Answer categories: no pain, mild moderate, severe

  • Fingers (left/right), wrist (left/right), elbow (left/right), shoulder (left/right), hip (left/right), knee (left/right), ankle (left/right), toes (left/right), neck, back

What is the pattern of symptom development since the time they first began (see patterns on the right; patients could also draw a pattern themselves)		 Embedded Image Embedded Image Embedded Image Embedded Image

  • Note: full questionnaire (with translations) added as online supplementary material.

  • SPARRA, Symptoms in Persons At Risk for Rheumatoid Arthritis.