| PREVALENCE OF OBESITY AMONG RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS PATIENTS IN SUEZ CANAL AREA AND ITS RELATION WITH DISEASE ACTIVITY |
| Paper ID : 1060-YRC2022 (R1) |
| Authors |
|
Elham Azmy Abdulkader Abdellatif * Suez Canal University |
| Abstract |
| Background: Obesity is a major health issue, according to “100 million health” survey, which was conducted in Egypt in 2019 and screened 49.7 million adult Egyptians (≥18 years old), 39.8% of adult Egyptians suffered from obesity. Obesity was more prevalent in adult females than adult males. Biologically active substances released by the adipose tissue may contribute to a chronic condition of low-grade inflammation and increase disease activity in obese patients with rheumatoid arthritis. The documented association among obesity and inflammation, as well as the changes in body composition in patients with RA justify investigating the influence of obesity on this disease. Aim of study: is to determine the prevalence of obesity in RA patients and to study the effect of obesity on disease activity and functional outcome in RA patients. Methods: cross-sectional study included 104 RA patients, fulfilling the 2010 ACR/EULAR classification criteria, who presented to rheumatology outpatient clinics in Suez Canal area, Patients were submitted to clinical examination, anthropometric measures (BMI and WC/HC ratio), laboratory investigations and patient’s functional status assessment using the health assessment questionnaire (HAQ-II). Results: 23.1% of RA patients had normal weight, while 27.9% were overweight and 49% were obese with statistically significant female predominance. There was a significant increase in DAS- 28 and HAQ-DI scores in overweight and obese patients compared to those with normal BMI. Conclusion: Results indicate that obesity is prevalent in RA patients and it affects the disease activity and functional status significantly. |
| Keywords |
| Obesity, RA, DAS-28, HAQ-DI. |
| Status: Accepted (Oral Presentation) |
