Satisfaction of Patients and Physicians with Treatments for Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Population-Based Survey in China

Abstract

Purpose

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic inflammatory disease characterized by chronic destructive synovitis and possible multisystem involvement. This study aimed to survey the treatment satisfaction of physicians and patients with RA, and to explore the potential factors.

Patients and Methods

This cross-sectional study was conducted in 12 centers across China between March 2018 and April 2018. The Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire for Medication version II was used to assess the treatment satisfaction of patients and physicians. Multivariable regression analysis was used to determine the factors independently associated with treatment satisfaction of patients.

Results

The patients’ satisfaction (n=335) with biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) was higher than physicians’ satisfaction (n=146) regarding the side effects (95.0±14.3 vs 84.6±15.7, P<0.001) and convenience (74.6±21.2 vs 69.1±16.5, P=0.002). Among physicians, global satisfaction with bDMARDs was higher than that with conventional synthetic DMARDs (csDMARDs). The multivariable regression analysis showed that age was positively associated with satisfaction of patients, while college or above education and self-assessment of disease severity were inversely associated with satisfaction. Treatment satisfaction was associated positively with the quality of communication with the physician and inversely with treatment costs.

Conclusion

For bDMARDs, the treatment satisfaction of patients with RA is generally higher than that of physicians'. Physicians’ satisfaction with bDMARDs is higher than with csDMARDs. Age, education, disease severity, communication with the physician, and treatment costs are independently associated with the treatment satisfaction among patients. Physician–patient communication should be improved in clinical practice. Treatment costs should be taken into account when physicians make decisions.

Keywords:

• patient
• physician
• rheumatoid arthritis
• treatment satisfaction
• TSQM-II

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge contributions from the HealthCloud Co., Ltd as the system provider.

Data Sharing

Deidentified participant data and protocol are available upon reasonable request to the Corresponding Author. Data can be available for a period of 10 years.

Disclosure

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by the Chinese National Key Technology R&D Program (2017YFC0907601, 2017YFC0907604).