Abstract ObjectivesTo clarify the impact of orthopaedic surgery on the quality of life (QOL) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), by comparing surgical cases with matched non-surgical controls using multicenter data from the Fukuoka Rheumatoid Arthritis NetworK (FRANK) registry. MethodsA retrospective cohort study was conducted using FRANK registry data (2018–2022). Sixty-three surgical cases and non-surgical controls were analysed after propensity score matching for age, sex, disease duration, disease activity, and medication. Changes in disease activity (DAS28-ESR), activities of daily living (mHAQ), and QOL (EQ-5D) over one year were compared using paired and independent t-tests. Regression analyses identified predictors of QOL improvement. ResultsThe majority of patients were in low disease activity (DAS28-ESR 3.2). The surgical group showed a statistically significant improvement in EQ-5D (+0.04; p 0.05), while no change was observed in the non-surgical group. Lower preoperative EQ-5D was the predictor of improvement. Mobility and anxiety/depression domains contributed most to QOL gains. ConclusionsOrthopaedic surgery significantly improves QOL in RA patients, even in those with a low DAS-ESR28. Patients with lower baseline QOL benefit most. These findings support the importance of surgical intervention as a complementary strategy in holistic RA management.
Tsurui et al. (Fri,) studied this question.