Work disability remains a major problem in rheumatoid arthritis in the 2000s: data from 32 countries in the QUEST-RA study.

Abstract

Work disability is a major consequence of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), associated not only with traditional disease activity variables, but also more significantly with demographic, functional, occupational, and societal variables. Recent reports suggest that the use of biologic agents offers potential for reduced work disability rates, but the conclusions are based on surrogate disease activity measures derived from studies primarily from Western countries.
The Quantitative Standard Monitoring of Patients with RA (QUEST-RA) multinational database of 8,039 patients in 86 sites in 32 countries, 16 with high gross domestic product (GDP) (>24K US dollars (USD) per capita) and 16 low-GDP countries (<11K USD), was analyzed for work and disability status at onset and over the course of RA and clinical status of patients who continued working or had stopped working in high-GDP versus low-GDP countries according to all RA Core Data Set measures. Associations of work disability status with RA Core Data Set variables and indices were analyzed using descriptive statistics and regression analyses.
At the time of first symptoms, 86% of men (range 57%-100% among countries) and 64% (19%-87%) of women <65 years were working. More than one third (37%) of these patients reported subsequent work disability because of RA. Among 1,756 patients whose symptoms had begun during the 2000s, the probabilities of continuing to work were 80% (95% confidence interval (CI) 78%-82%) at 2 years and 68% (95% CI 65%-71%) at 5 years, with similar patterns in high-GDP and low-GDP countries. Patients who continued working versus stopped working had significantly better clinical status for all clinical status measures and patient self-report scores, with similar patterns in high-GDP and low-GDP countries. However, patients who had stopped working in high-GDP countries had better clinical status than patients who continued working in low-GDP countries. The most significant identifier of work disability in all subgroups was Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ) functional disability score.
Work disability rates remain high among people with RA during this millennium. In low-GDP countries, people remain working with high levels of disability and disease activity. Cultural and economic differences between societies affect work disability as an outcome measure for RA.

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RESEARCH ARTICLEOpen Access
Work disability remains a major problem in
rheumatoid arthritis in the 2000s: data from 32
countries in the QUEST-RA Study
Tuulikki Sokka1,2*, Hannu Kautiainen2, Theodore Pincus3, Suzanne MM Verstappen4, Amita Aggarwal5, Rieke Alten6,
Daina Andersone7, Humeira Badsha8, Eva Baecklund9, Miguel Belmonte10, Jürgen Craig-Müller11,
Licia Maria Henrique da Mota12, Alexander Dimic13, Nihal A Fathi14, Gianfranco Ferraccioli15, Wataru Fukuda16,
Pál Géher17, Feride Gogus18, Najia Hajjaj-Hassouni19, Hisham Hamoud20, Glenn Haugeberg21, Dan Henrohn9,
Kim Horslev-Petersen22, Ruxandra Ionescu23, Dmitry Karateew24, Reet Kuuse25, Ieda Maria Magalhaes Laurindo26,
Juris Lazovskis27, Reijo Luukkainen28, Ayman Mofti29, Eithne Murphy30, Ayako Nakajima31, Omondi Oyoo32,
Sapan C Pandya33, Christof Pohl6, Denisa Predeteanu23, Mjellma Rexhepi34, Sylejman Rexhepi34, Banwari Sharma35,
Eisuke Shono36, Jean Sibilia37, Stanislaw Sierakowski38, Fotini N Skopouli39, Sigita Stropuviene40, Sergio Toloza41,
Ivo Valter42, Anthony Woolf43, Hisashi Yamanaka31, the QUEST-RA study group
Abstract
Introduction: Work disability is a major consequence of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), associated not only with
traditional disease activity variables, but also more significantly with demographic, functional, occupational, and
societal variables. Recent reports suggest that the use of biologic agents offers potential for reduced work disability
rates, but the conclusions are based on surrogate disease activity measures derived from studies primarily from
Western countries.
Methods: The Quantitative Standard Monitoring of Patients with RA (QUEST-RA) multinational database of 8,039
patients in 86 sites in 32 countries, 16 with high gross domestic product (GDP) (>24K US dollars (USD) per capita)
and 16 low-GDP countries (<11K USD), was analyzed for work and disability status at onset and over the course of
RA and clinical status of patients who continued working or had stopped working in high-GDP versus low-GDP
countries according to all RA Core Data Set measures. Associations of work disability status with RA Core Data Set
variables and indices were analyzed using descriptive statistics and regression analyses.
Results: At the time of first symptoms, 86% of men (range 57%-100% among countries) and 64% (19%-87%) of
women <65 years were working. More than one third (37%) of these patients reported subsequent work disability
because of RA. Among 1,756 patients whose symptoms had begun during the 2000s, the probabilities of continuing
to work were 80% (95% confidence interval (CI) 78%-82%) at 2 years and 68% (95% CI 65%-71%) at 5 years, with
similar patterns in high-GDP and low-GDP countries. Patients who continued working versus stopped working had
significantly better clinical status for all clinical status measures and patient self-report scores, with similar patterns in
high-GDP and low-GDP countries. However, patients who had stopped working in high-GDP countries had better
clinical status than patients who continued working in low-GDP countries. The most significant identifier of work
disability in all subgroups was Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ) functional disability score.
Conclusions: Work disability rates remain high among people with RA during this millennium. In low-GDP
countries, people remain working with high levels of disability and disease activity. Cultural and economic
differences between societies affect work disability as an outcome measure for RA.
* Correspondence: tuulikki.sokka@ksshp.fi
1Jyväskylä Central Hospital, Keskussairaalantie 19, 40620 Jyväskylä, Finland
Sokka et al. Arthritis Research & Therapy 2010, 12:R42
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© 2010 Sokka et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons
Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in
any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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Introduction
Work disability is a major consequence of rheumatoid
arthritis (RA) [1-4]. Although RA is cumulative over
time, 20% to 30% of patients become permanently
work-disabled in the first 2 to 3 years of the disease [5].
Rapid remission in early disease appears to be a benefi-
cial strategy against work disability in RA [6].
The availability of biologic agents during the past dec-
ade has led to expectations of reduced work disability
rates in RA [7], according to observations in clinical
trials [8-12]. However, reports of clinical cohorts indi-
cate that work disability remains a major problem in RA
[13-16]. Possible explanations are that the timing of bio-
logic agents after joint damage is seen may be too late
in many cases or that the use of biologic agents is unu-
sual in many countries for financial reasons or both
[17].
The risk of work disability in RA is associated not
only with traditional articular, radiographic, and labora-
tory measures of disease activity and severity but as
much or more with demographic, socioeconomic, voca-
tional, functional, and social policy variables [1,18].
Although work disability is one of the most important
outcomes in RA, cultural and economical differences
between societies [19] may compromise its value as an
outcome measure.
Most studies concerning work disability in RA have
been conducted in North America and Western Europe,
and little is known about the employability of RA
patients in other countries. A multinational database,
Quantitative Standard Monitoring of Patients with
Rheumatoid Arthritis (QUEST-RA) [20,21], was estab-
lished to assess 100 unselected consecutive RA patients
per clinic in different countries, including countries out-
side Western Europe and North America. In June 2009,
the QUEST-RA database included 8,039 patients from
86 clinics in 32 countries. The QUEST-RA database was
analyzed for work status at the onset of RA and discon-
tinuation of work due to RA, as recalled by the patients.
Current clinical status of patients who continued to
work or who had stopped working in high-gross domes-
tic product (high-GDP) and low-GDP countries was
analyzed.
Materials and methods
Establishment of database
QUEST-RA was established in 2005 with the objectives
to promote quantitative assessment in usual rheumatol-
ogy care and to develop a baseline cross-sectional data-
base of consecutive RA patients seen outside of clinical
trials in regular care in many countries. Three or more
rheumatologists were asked to enroll 100 consecutive
unselected patients in each country [20]. As of June 2009,
the program enrolled 8,039 patients from 86 sites in 32
countries, including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Denmark,
Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hun-
gary, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Kosovo, Latvia,
Lithuania, Morocco, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland,
Romania, Russia, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, United
Arab Emirates, the UK, and the US [21].
Ethics committee approvals
The study was carried out in compliance with the
Declaration of Helsinki. Ethics committees or internal
review boards of participating institutes approved the
study, and written informed consent was obtained from
the patients.
Physician assessment measures
All patients were assessed according to a standard pro-
tocol to evaluate RA (SPERA) [22]. The physician review
included four RA Core Data Set measures: a formal
examination of swollen joints (swollen joint count using
28 joints, or SJC28) and tender joints (tender joint
count using 28 joints, or TJC28), global estimate of dis-
ease activity, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR).
Rheumatoid factor (RF) positivity according to local
reference values was reported as well as whether the
patient had radiographic erosions. All courses of dis-
ease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and bio-
logic agents were listed. The number of DMARDs over
disease course was calculated.
Patient self-report questionnaire measures
Patients completed a 4-page self-report questionnaire,
which included three RA Core Data Set measures - phy-
sical function, pain, and patient global estimate (PTGL)
- as well as demographic data, fatigue, and psychological
distress. A standard Health Assessment Questionnaire
(HAQ) [23] assesses physical function in activities of
daily living and has four response categories: 0 = with-
out any difficulty, 1 = with some difficulty, 2 = with
much difficulty, 3 = unable to do. Visual analog scales
(VASs) (0 = best to 10 = worst) were completed for
pain, fatigue, and PTGL. Psychological distress was
queried as the capacity to cope with sleep, stress, anxi-
ety, and depression in the HAQ format with response
options 0 to 3 (seen above) for each question. The mean
of the responses of these four questions was calculated
for PS-HAQ (Psychological HAQ) of 0 to 3 [24].
Data concerning work or disability status were based
on a patient self-report questionnaire that included
queries about work status at the time of the first symp-
toms of RA and currently and that had the following
response alternatives: working full-time, working part-
time, unemployed, student, homemaker, retired, and
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disabled. Full-time workers, part-time workers, students,
and unemployed individuals were classified as working
in these analyses as these groups had the potential to be
employed in the workforce. Homemakers, retirees, and
disabled individuals were classified as non-working,
although individuals in these groups may perform
valuable non-paid work. Patient self-perceived work dis-
ability was queried with the questions, ‘Are you work-
disabled because of RA?’ (with response options ‘yes’ or
‘no’) and ‘If so, since when?’
Gross domestic product
The GDP of each country in 2005 was obtained from a
database of the International Monetary Fund [25] and is
expressed in units of 1,000 US dollars (USD) per capita.
GDP ranged from 3.5 to 49K USD but was either less
than 11K USD or greater than 24K USD in all countries.
In this report, the 16 countries with a GDP per capita of
greater than 24K USD are classified as ‘high-GDP’
whereas the 16 countries with a GDP per capita of less
than 11K USD are classified as ‘low-GDP’.
Statistical methods
Descriptive results are presented as mean, median, and
percentages. The disease activity score using 28 joint
counts (DAS28) [26] was calculated from the formula
0.56*v(TJC28) + 0.28*v(SJC28) + 0.70*ln(ESR) + 0.014*
(PTGL) and ranged from 0 to 9.1 (low to high). Com-
parisons of demographic variables, clinical characteris-
tics, RA disease activity measures, and treatment-related
variables were performed using parametric and non-
parametric tests for continuous variables and the chi-
square test for categorical variables. Kaplan-Meier
statistics were applied; those who reached age 65 after
the onset of RA were censored at that date.
Regressions were performed to analyze which demo-
graphic and clinical measures were independently signif-
icant to identify work disability status. Variables in the
model included age, sex, education level, HAQ physical
function, radiographic erosions, RF, ESR, and SJC28.
Data of all individuals from all countries were pooled
together; regressions were performed in four indepen-
dent categories for all countries: in low-GDP countries,
with onset prior to 2000 and after 2000, and in high-
GDP countries, with onset prior to 2000 and after 2000.
The year 2000 was chosen as a milestone because the
first biologic agent for treatment of RA was approved in
1999.
Results
Patients
The mean age of 8,039 patients in the QUEST-RA
database, from 86 clinics in 32 countries, was 55
years; 80% were females, and the mean disease
duration was 11 years (Table 1). Patients in low-GDP
countries were younger and were more likely to be
female and have RF and radiographic erosions com-
pared with those in high-GDP countries, as described
in detail previously [27]. Patients in low-GDP coun-
tries had statistically significantly higher disease activ-
ity levels of all individual RA Core Data Set measures,
including physician-derived measures and patient self-
report scores, compared with patients in high-GDP
countries. The number of DMARDs taken, and espe-
cially the percentage of patients who had ever taken
biologic agents, differed significantly, with 31% in
high-GDP countries and 9.4% in low-GDP countries
(Table 1).
Work status at baseline
At the time of first symptoms, 68% of patients who were
65 years old or younger, including 85% of men (57% to
100% among countries) and 64% of women (19% to
83%), reported that they were working (Table 2).
Among women, the proportion working at onset ranged
from greater than 80% in Sweden, Finland, Estonia, and
Lithuania to not more than 50% in Turkey, Kosovo,
Morocco, Greece, and Egypt (Table 2).
Rate of work disability
A third of the patients (37%) who were younger than 65
years old and working at the onset of symptoms
reported that they subsequently became work-disabled
because of RA, over the median (interquartile range)
observation period of 9 (4 to 16) years. Among 1,754
patients whose symptoms had begun during the 2000s
and were working at the baseline, the rates of probabil-
ity (95% confidence interval) to continue working were
80% (78% to 82%) at 2 years and 68% (65% to 71%) at 5
years, in a similar pattern to women and men in high-
GDP and low-GDP countries (Figure 1).
Clinical status variables in people younger than 65 years
old who were working versus those who had stopped
working
People who had stopped working had poorer clinical
status according to all disease activity and patient self-
report measures compared with people who were work-
ing (Table 3). Although better clinical status was seen in
patients who were working than in those who were not
working within high-GDP countries and within low-
GDP countries, patients who were working in low-GDP
countries had significantly better clinical status accord-
ing to most measures than patients in high-GDP coun-
tries who had stopped working (Table 3). Among
patients who were younger than 65 years old at the
evaluation visit and reported that they are working, the
current mean HAQ levels in high-GDP versus low-GDP
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countries were 0.43 versus 0.82 in men and 0.62 versus
0.95 in women. The mean DAS28 values in high-GDP
versus low-GDP countries were, respectively, 3.1 versus
4.6 in men and 3.4 versus 4.8 in women (Figure 2), indi-
cating that women continue working at higher disability
and disease activity levels compared with men.
Differences in drug treatments
Among individuals who were younger than 65 years old
at the evaluation, the rates of use of biologic agents
were higher in those who had discontinued versus con-
tinued working and were 39% versus 32% in high-GDP
countries and 13% versus 8.3% in low-GDP countries.
Identifiers of work disability
A series of logistic regressions was performed to analyze
the independent capacity of age, sex, education, RF,
radiographic erosions, HAQ physical function, ESR, and
SJC28 to identify people who reported that they were
work-disabled due to RA (Table 4). In the entire data-
base, HAQ physical function, radiographic erosions, and
sex were the three significant variables in these regres-
sions (Table 4).
Discussion
The multinational QUEST-RA study provides several
important observations concerning work-related out-
comes in RA: (a) work disability rates remain high
among patients with RA during this millennium; (b)
major differences are seen in the proportion of women
and men working at the onset of RA in different coun-
tries; (c) people continue working in low-GDP countries
with levels of disease activity as high as or higher than
those of work-disabled people with RA in high-GDP
countries; and (d) in both high-GDP and low-GDP
nations, the most significant identifier of work disability
is the HAQ functional disability score.
Work disability rates remain high among patients with
rheumatoid arthritis during this millennium
The availability of biologic agents over the past decade
has increased expectations of reduced work disability
rates in RA [7], based on results of clinical studies
[8-11]. However, reports based on clinical cohorts have
not indicated major effects of biologic agents on
patients’ work status [13-15]. The timing of treatment
with biologic agents may not be optimal in many
Table 1 Patient and disease characteristics in 8,039 patients in the QUEST-RA study in countries with a high (>24K
USD) or low (<11K USD) GDP
All patients
Countries
TotalHigh-GDP Low-GDP
P valuea
Number
Patient characteristics
Female, percentage
Age in years, mean
Disease duration in years, mean
Rheumatoid factor-positive, percentage
Erosive disease, percentage
Disease activity measures
DAS28 (0 to 9.1), mean
ESR, median
SJC (0 to 28), median
TJC (0 to 28), median
Physician global (0 to 10), median
Patient self-report
HAQ physical function (0 to 3), median
Pain VAS (0 to 10), median
Patient global VAS (0 to 10), median
Fatigue VAS (0 to 10), median
Psychological HAQ (0 to 3), mean
Treatment-related variables
Number of DMARDs ever taken, mean
Biologics ever, percentage of patients
8,0394,235 3,804
80%
55
11
75%
63%
76%
58
11
73%
59%
85%
52
11
77%
67%
< 0.001
< 0.001
NS
< 0.001
< 0.001
4.4
25
2
4
2.5
3.7
18
1
2
1.7
5.2
33
4
9
3.9
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
0.88
4.1
4.2
4.5
0.84
0.75
3.2
3.2
3.8
0.73
1.3
4.7
4.8
5.0
0.99
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
2.7
23%
2.8
31%
2.5
9.4%
< 0.001
< 0.001
aUnadjusted P values are presented. DAS28, disease activity score using 28 joint counts; DMARD, disease-modifying antirheumatic drug; ESR, erythrocyte
sedimentation rate; GDP, gross domestic product; HAQ, Health Assessment Questionnaire; NS, not significant; QUEST-RA, Quantitative Standard Monitoring of
Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis; SJC, swollen joint count; TJC, tender joint count; USD, US dollars; VAS, visual analog scale.
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situations, and biologic agents are used infrequently in
many countries for financial reasons (Tables 1 and 3)
[17]. In QUEST-RA, a greater proportion of those who
had discontinued versus continued working had taken
biologic agents. Perhaps the early use of biologic agents
will be associated with prevention of work disability in
the future. However, at this time in actual clinics, the
use of biologic agents appears to be primarily a surro-
gate for disease severity. In an ideal world, a reduction
of work disability rates in RA patients might be achieved
by initiating early and aggressive treatment within some
weeks or months of the first symptoms [28]. The Fin-
nish Rheumatoid Arthritis Combination Trial (FIN-
RACo) [6] documented that early remission is critical
concerning subsequent work or disability status: All
patients who were in remission 6 months after baseline
continued to work at 5 years compared with less than
80% with ACR20 (American College of Rheumatology
20% improvement criteria) and ACR50 responses and
less than 50% with less than ACR20 responses [6]. FIN-
RACo also indicated that traditional DMARDs, without
biologic agents, can prevent work disability in early RA.
Work disability as an outcome measure of rheumatoid
arthritis
It has become a fashion to use work disability-related
outcome measures in the trials of biologic agents.
Table 2 Percentage of patients who were younger than
65 years old and working at the onset of symptoms in
the QUEST-RA study in 32 countries
Percentage workingaat onset
CountryWomenMenAll
Sweden
Finland
Estonia
Lithuania
UK
Latvia
USA
France
Denmark
Hungary
Brazil
Germany
Canada
Argentina
Russia
India
Poland
Japan
The Netherlands
Ireland
UAE
Spain
Serbia
Italy
Egypt
Greece
Morocco
Kosovo
Turkey
Norway
Total
88%
83%
83%
82%
80%
79%
79%
78%
76%
75%
73%
72%
65%
64%
63%
62%
61%
60%
60%
59%
59%
57%
56%
54%
50%
49%
42%
23%
19%
NA
64%
90%
86%
82%
85%
90%
100%
93%
86%
93%
73%
83%
89%
89%
100%
96%
93%
78%
85%
82%
91%
100%
85%
70%
82%
73%
73%
100%
57%
66%
NA
85%
88%
84%
83%
83%
82%
83%
83%
80%
80%
75%
73%
75%
70%
67%
69%
67%
63%
64%
67%
71%
64%
65%
57%
60%
51%
55%
48%
28%
25%
NA
68%
NA, not applicable; QUEST-RA, Quantitative Standard Monitoring of Patients
with Rheumatoid Arthritis; UAE, United Arab Emirates.aDefined in Materials
and methods.
Figure 1 Kaplan-Meier probability to continue work in women
and men who were diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis in the
2000s in countries with a high or low gross domestic product
(GDP). USD, US dollars.
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Reports from clinical trials of biologic agents appear to
be based on a traditional ‘biomedical model’ [29] view
that work disability is a direct consequence of severe
disease activity and damage. Previous studies document
that mean levels of clinical variables in RA patients who
were work-disabled in Finland indicated better clinical
status than RA patients who were working in the US,
and this difference was explained by different social
policies regarding work disability [19]. In QUEST-RA,
disease activity and disability levels were as high in
working people in low-GDP countries as in work-dis-
abled people in high-GDP countries. Thus, the QUEST-
RA data extend evidence that macroeconomic variables
influence an individual’s work status to a greater degree
than an individual’s disease activity. The majority of
patients with RA are women, a low proportion of whom
are employed in certain countries at disease onset. In
the present study, women continued working with
higher scores of disease activity and functional disability
compared with men (Figure 2). Cultural and socioeco-
nomic differences between societies affect work disabil-
ity as an outcome measure. In the RA population, losses
in household productivity may be a more important
matter than disability at paid work; household produc-
tivity is affected many-fold compared with paid produc-
tivity [30].
The HAQ functional disability score as the most sig-
nificant identifier of work disability was confirmed in
the QUEST-RA database including different countries
and cultures in addition to what has been observed in
Western countries [31,32]. In addition to disease activity
and damage, variables such as age, sex, education, occu-
pation, duration of disease, functional status, family,
physical demand, and time control issues at work have
an impact on work status [1,33]. In one study, if scores
were known for physical function, occupation, age, and
duration of disease, other clinical status measures,
including joint counts, radiographs, and laboratory tests,
Table 3 Patient and disease characteristics in 5,493 individuals younger than 65 years who are working or not
working in the QUEST-RA study in countries with a high (>24K USD) or low (<11K USD) GDP
Individuals younger than 65 years old
All countriesHigh-GDP countriesLow-GDP countries
WorkingNot
working
P
valuea
WorkingNot
working
P
valuea
Working Not
working
P
valuea
Number
Patient characteristics
Females, percentage
Age in years, mean
Disease duration in years, mean
Rheumatoid factor-positive,
percentage
Erosive disease, percentage
Disease activity measures
DAS28 (0 to 9.1), mean
ESR, median
SJC (0 to 28), median
TJC (0 to 28), median
Physician global (0 to 10), median
Patient self-report
HAQ physical function (0 to 3),
median
Pain VAS (0 to 10), median
Patient global VAS (0 to 10), median
Fatigue VAS (0 to 10), median
Psychological HAQ (0 to 3), mean
Treatment-related variables
Number of DMARDs ever taken,
mean
Biologics ever, percentage of
patients
2,5902,903 1,436 1,3471,154 1,556
76%
46
8.3
72%
85%
52
11
75%
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
0.004
72%
47
8.7
70%
81%
54
12
75%
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
0.001
82%
45
7.8
75%
89%
50
11
76%
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
0.64
53%65%< 0.00151%62%< 0.00156% 69% < 0.001
4.0
20
2
3
2.1
4.6
26
3
5
2.8
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
3.3
14
1
1
1.5
3.9
18
2
2
1.9
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
4.8
28
3
7
3.0
5.2
32
4
8
3.8
< 0.001
< 0.001
0.002
< 0.001
< 0.001
0.631.1 < 0.0010.500.88 < 0.0010.881.3< 0.001
3.2
3.3
3.9
0.79
4.5
4.6
4.8
0.94
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
2.3
2.4
3.2
0.60
3.8
3.6
4.2
0.82
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
4.2
4.3
4.5
0.87
4.9
5.0
5.2
1.1
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
< 0.001
2.422.73 < 0.0012.63.1< 0.0012.22.4 < 0.001
22% 21%0.6032%35%0.128.5% 9.0%0.65
aUnadjusted P values are presented. DAS28, disease activity score using 28 joint counts; DMARD, disease-modifying antirheumatic drug; ESR, erythrocyte
sedimentation rate; GDP, gross domestic product; HAQ, Health Assessment Questionnaire; QUEST-RA, Quantitative Standard Monitoring of Patients with
Rheumatoid Arthritis; SJC, swollen joint count; TJC, tender joint count; USD, US dollars; VAS, visual analog scale.
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did not add to the explanation of a patient’s work or
disability status [34].
Limitations
This study has several limitations. First, cross-sectional
QUEST-RA data cannot provide detailed analysis of all
work disability-related issues such as specified instru-
ments concerning work disability/participation but
rather provide an overview across various countries. The
short 4-page patient questionnaire did not include a
question about workload, for example, to analyze in this
multinational setting whether, as has been suggested
[35], work disability is a consequence of mismatch
between an individual’s functional capacity (HAQ) and
work requirements. Second, some of the patients have a
long disease duration and might not fully remember
their work history. Therefore, recall bias may be one of
the limitations of this study. Third, a limited number of
femalemale
DAS28, mean (95% CI)
5,0
4,5
4,0
3,5
3,0
2,5
female male
HAQ, mean (95% CI)
1.00
0.80
0.60
0.40
low
high
Country
Economy
GDP
Figure 2 Disease activity (DAS28) and physical function (HAQ) in men and women who were younger than 65 years old and
continued working in high-GDP and low-GDP countries. CI, confidence interval; DAS28, disease activity score using 28 joint counts; GDP,
gross domestic product; HAQ, Health Assessment Questionnaire.
Table 4 Regression analyses to identify work disability status in 5,493 individuals younger than 65 years in the
QUEST-RA study in 32 countries with a high (>24K USD) or low (<11K USD) GDP
Type of
country RAlowest 2/3
Onset of Sex, male AgeEducationRF-positive,
ever
Erosion-
positive, ever
HAQESR SJC28 Constant
All countries1.46
(1.26-1.68)
2.04
(1.38-3.02)
1.26
(0.92-1.74)
1.41
(1.10-1.79)
1.71
(1.29-2.26)
0.99
(0.99-1.0)
0.98
(0.97-0.99)
1.00
(0.99-1.01)
0.99
(0.98-1.00)
0.99
(0.98-1.00)
1.36
(1.21-1.54)
1.22
(0.95-1.58)
1.65
(1.27-2.14)
1.40
(1.13-1.73)
1.43
(1.09-1.87)
1.10
(0.96-1.26)
1.52
(1.12-2.08)
1.07
(0.82-1.42)
0.89
(0.70-1.14)
0.99
(0.75-1.30)
1.74
(1.53-1.96)
1.97
(1.40-2.76)
2.10
(1.64-2.69)
1.12
(0.89-1.42)
1.16
(0.90-1.50)
2.76
(2.53-3.01)
2.65
(2.19-3.19)
2.33
(1.93-2.81)
2.94
(2.52-3.43)
2.89
(2.36-3.54)
1.00
(0.99-1.00)
1.00
(0.99-1.00)
1.00
(0.99-1.01)
1.00
(0.99-1.01)
1.00
(0.99-1.01)
0.99
(0.98-1.00)
0.98
(0.96-1.01)
0.98
(0.95-1.00)
1.00
(0.98-1.02)
1.02
(0.99-1.05)
0.13
Low-GDPPre-20000.32
Post-20000.07
High-GDPPre-20000.25
Post-20000.15
Odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) are presented. ESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate; GDP, gross domestic product; HAQ, Health Assessment Questionnaire;
QUEST-RA, Quantitative Standard Monitoring of Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis; RA, rheumatoid arthritis; RF, rheumatoid factor; SJC28, swollen joint count
using 28 joints; USD, US dollars.
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patients were included per country. Nonetheless, results
were quite similar among clinics within each country
[20]. Fourth, it is possible that only RA patients with
poor clinical status visit clinics in low-GDP countries
and that patients with better status in high-GDP coun-
tries seek medical care. While this possibility cannot be
excluded, the study was designed to incorporate a cross-
section of patients seen in various countries. Neverthe-
less, the QUEST-RA results illustrate the potential value
of collaborative databases, with identical database con-
tent and architecture, to provide an opportunity to
study associations between disease characteristics, thera-
pies, and outcomes at many sites in many countries
with different cultural and socioeconomic environments.
Work disability accounts for a major fraction of the
costs of RA to both patients and societies. Improved
work disability outcomes in RA will require attention to
social, economic, and political issues and wider physi-
cian and public education in addition to improved medi-
cal management of the disease.
Conclusions
Work disability rates remain high among people with
RA during this millennium. In low-GDP countries, peo-
ple remain working with high levels of disability and dis-
ease activity. Cultural and economic differences between
societies affect work disability as an outcome measure
for RA.
Abbreviations
ACR20: American College of Rheumatology 20% improvement criteria;
DAS28: disease activity score using 28 joint counts; DMARD: disease-
modifying antirheumatic drug; ESR: erythrocyte sedimentation rate; FIN-
RACo: The Finnish Rheumatoid Arthritis Combination Trial; GDP: gross
domestic product; HAQ: Health Assessment Questionnaire; ln: logarithm;
PTGL: patient global estimate of disease activity; QUEST-RA: Quantitative
Standard Monitoring of Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis; RA: rheumatoid
arthritis; RF: rheumatoid factor; SJC28: swollen joint count using 28 joints;
TJC28: tender joint count using 28 joints; USD: US dollars.
Acknowledgements
QUEST-RA Investigators:
Argentina: Sergio Toloza, Santiago Aguero, Sergio Orellana Barrera, Soledad
Retamozo, Hospital San Juan Bautista, Catamarca; Paula Alba, Cruz Lascano,
Alejandra Babini, Eduardo Albiero, Hospital of Cordoba, Cordoba.
Brazil: Geraldo da Rocha Castelar Pinheiro, Universidade do Estado do Rio de
Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro; Licia Maria Henrique da Mota, Hospital Universitário
de Brasília; Ines Guimaraes da Silveira, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio
Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre; FAC Rocha, Universidade Federal do
Ceará, Fortaleza; Ieda Maria Magalhães Laurindo, Universidade Estadual de
São Paulo, São Paulo.
Canada: Juris Lazovskis, Riverside Professional Center, Sydney, NS.
Denmark: Merete Lund Hetland, Lykke Ørnbjerg, Copenhagen Univ Hospital
at Hvidovre and Glostrup, Hvidovre; Kim Hørslev-Petersen, King Christian the
Xth Hospital, Gråsten; Troels Mørk Hansen, Lene Surland Knudsen,
Copenhagen Univ Hospital at Herlev, Herlev.
Egypt: Hisham Hamoud, Mohamad Sobhy, Ahmad Fahmy, Mohamad Magdy,
Hany Aly, Hatem Saeid, Ahmad Nagm, Al-Azhar University, Cairo; Nihal A
Fathi, Assiut University Hospital, Assiut; Esam Abda, Zahra Ebraheam, Abo
Sohage University Hospital, Sohage.
Estonia: Raili Müller, Reet Kuuse, Marika Tammaru, Riina Kallikorm, Tartu
University Hospital, Tartu; Tony Peets, Kati Otsa, Karin Laas, East-Tallinn
Central Hospital, Tallinn; Ivo Valter, Center for Clinical and Basic Research,
Tallinn.
Finland: Heidi Mäkinen, Jyväskylä Central Hospital, Jyväskylä, and Tampere
University Hospital, Tampere; Kai Immonen, Sinikka Forsberg, Jukka
Lähteenmäki, North Karelia Central Hospital, Joensuu; Reijo Luukkainen,
Satakunta Central Hospital, Rauma.
France: Laure Gossec, Maxime Dougados, University René Descartes, Hôpital
Cochin, Paris; Jean Francis Maillefert, Dijon University Hospital, University of
Burgundy, and INSERM U887, Dijon; Bernard Combe, Hôpital Lapeyronie,
Montpellier; Jean Sibilia, Hôpital Hautepierre, Strasbourg.
Greece: Alexandros A Drosos, Sofia Exarchou, University of Ioannina,
Ioannina; H M Moutsopoulos, Afrodite Tsirogianni, School of Medicine,
National University of Athens, Athens; Fotini N Skopouli, Maria Mavrommati,
Euroclinic Hospital, Athens.
Germany: Gertraud Herborn, Rolf Rau, Siegfrid Wassenberg, Evangelisches
Fachkrankenhaus, Ratingen; Rieke Alten, Christof Pohl, Schlosspark-Klinik,
Berlin; Gerd R Burmester, Bettina Marsmann, Charite - University Medicine
Berlin, Berlin.
Hungary: Pál Géher, Semmelweis University of Medical Sciences, Budapest;
Bernadette Rojkovich, Ilona Újfalussy, Polyclinic of the Hospitaller Brothers of
St. John of God in Budapest, Budapest.
Ireland: Barry Bresnihan, St. Vincent University Hospital, Dublin; Patricia
Minnock, Our Lady’s Hospice, Dublin; Eithne Murphy, Claire Sheehy, Edel
Quirke, Connolly Hospital, Dublin; Joe Devlin, Shafeeq Alraqi, Waterford
Regional Hospital, Waterford.
India: Amita Aggarwal, Department of Immunology, Lucknow; Sapan C
Pandya, Vedanta Institiute of Medical Sciences, Ahmedabad; Banwari Sharma,
Department of Immunology, Jaipur Hospital.
Italy: Massimiliano Cazzato, Stefano Bombardieri, Santa Chiara Hospital, Pisa;
Gianfranco Ferraccioli, Alessia Morelli, Catholic University of Sacred Heart,
Rome; Maurizio Cutolo, University of Genova, Genova; Fausto Salaffi, Andrea
Stancati, University of Ancona, Ancona.
Japan: Hisashi Yamanaka, Ayako Nakajima, Institute of Rheumatology, Tokyo
Women’s Medical University, Tokyo; Wataru Fukuda, Department of
Rheumatology, Kyoto First Red Cross Hospital, Kyoto; Eisuke Shono, Shono
Rheumatism Clinic, Fukuoka.
Kenya: G Omondi Oyoo, Kenyatta Hospital, Nairobi.
Kosovo: Sylejman Rexhepi, Mjellma Rexhepi, Rheumatology Department,
Pristine.
Latvia: Daina Andersone, Pauls Stradina Clinical University Hospital, Riga.
Lithuania: Sigita Stropuviene, Jolanta Dadoniene, Institute of Experimental
and Clinical Medicine at Vilnius University, Vilnius; Asta Baranauskaite, Kaunas
University Hospital, Kaunas.
Morocco: Najia Hajjaj-Hassouni, Karima Benbouazza, Fadoua Allali, Rachid
Bahiri, Bouchra Amine, El Ayachi Hospital Mohamed Vth Souissi University,
Rabat.
The Netherlands: Johannes WG Jacobs, Suzan MM Verstappen, University
Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht; Margriet Huisman, Femke Bonte-Mineur,
Sint Franciscus Gasthuis, Rotterdam; Monique Hoekstra, Medisch Spectrum
Twente, Enschede.
Norway: Glenn Haugeberg, Hilde Gjelberg, Eirik Wilberg, Sørlandet Hospital,
Kristiansand.
Poland: Stanislaw Sierakowski, Medical University in Bialystok, Bialystok; Maria
Majdan, Medical University of Lublin, Lublin; Wojciech Romanowski, Poznan
Rheumatology Center in Srem, Srem; Witold Tlustochowicz, Military Institute
of Medicine, Warsaw; Danuta Kapolka, Silesian Hospital for Rheumatology
and Rehabilitation in Ustron Slaski, Ustroñ Slaski; Stefan Sadkiewicz, Szpital
Wojewodzki im. Jana Biziela, Bydgoszcz; Danuta Zarowny-Wierzbinska,
Wojewodzki Zespol Reumatologiczny im. dr Jadwigi Titz-Kosko, Sopot.
Romania: Ruxandra Ionescu, Denisa Predeteanu, Spitalul Clinic Sf Maria,
Bucharest; Lia Georgescu, Spitalul Cinic Judetean de Urgenta Mures, Targu
Mures; Rodica Marieta Chirieac, Codrina Ancuta, Gr. T. Popa University of
Medicine and Pharmacy Iasi, Iasi.
Russia: Dmitry Karateev, Elena Luchikhina, Institute of Rheumatology of
Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow; Natalia Chichasova, Moscow
Medical Academy, Moscow; Vladimir Badokin, Russian Medical Academy of
Postgraduate Education, Moscow.
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Serbia: Vlado Skakic, Aleksander Dimic, Jovan Nedovic, Aleksandra Stankovic,
Rheumatology Institut, Niska Banja.
Spain: Antonio Naranjo, Carlos Rodríguez-Lozano, Hospital de Gran Canaria
Dr. Negrin, Las Palmas; Jaime Calvo-Alen, Hospital Sierrallana Ganzo,
Torrelavega; Miguel Belmonte, Hospital General de Castellón, Castellón.
Sweden: Eva Baecklund, Dan Henrohn, Uppsala University Hospital, Uppsala;
Rolf Oding, Margareth Liveborn, Centrallasarettet, Västerås; Ann-Carin
Holmqvist, Hudiksvall Medical Clinic, Hudiksvall.
Turkey: Feride Gogus, Gazi University Medical Faculty, Ankara; Recep Tunc,
Meram Medical Faculty, Konya; Selda Celic, Cerrahpasa Medic Faculty,
Istanbul.
United Arab Emirates: Humeira Badsha, Dubai Bone and Joint Center, Dubai;
Ayman Mofti, American Hospital Dubai, Dubai.
UK: Peter Taylor, Catherine McClinton, Charing Cross Hospital, London;
Anthony Woolf, Ginny Chorghade, Royal Cornwall Hospital, Truro; Ernest
Choy, Stephen Kelly, Kings College Hospital, London.
USA: Theodore Pincus, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN; Yusuf Yazici, NYU
Hospital for Joint Diseases, New York, NY; Martin Bergman, Taylor Hospital,
Ridley Park, PA; Jurgen Craig-Müller, CentraCare Clinic, St. Cloud, MN.
Study Center: Tuulikki Sokka, Hannu Kautiainen, Jyväskylä Central Hospital,
Jyväskylä, and Medcare Oy, Äänekoski, Finland; Christopher Swearingen,
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA; Theodore
Pincus, New York University Hospital for Joint Diseases, New York, NY, USA.
Funding sources: Abbott provided an unrestricted grant to establish the
study and to cover printing and mailing expenses to participating
rheumatologists but did not participate in conducting the study, analyzing
data, or writing reports.
TS has received grants from Central Finland Health Care District and Heinola
Rheumatism Foundation Hospital (EVO grants).
Ethics committee approvals: the study was carried out in compliance with
the Declaration of Helsinki. Ethics committees or internal review boards of
participating institutes approved the study, and informed consent was
obtained from the patients.
Author details
1Jyväskylä Central Hospital, Keskussairaalantie 19, 40620 Jyväskylä, Finland.
2Medcare Oy, Hämeentie 1, 44100 Äänekoski, Finland.3New York University
Hospital for Joint Diseases, 301 East 17 Street, New York, NY 10003, USA.
4Department of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology F02.127, University
Medical Center Utrecht, P.O. Box 85500, 3508 GA Utrecht, The Netherlands.
5Department of Immunology, Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of
Medical Sciences, Lucknow, 226014, India.6Department of Internal Medicine
II, Rheumatology, Schlosspark-Klinik Teaching Hospital of the Charité,
University Medicine Berlin, Heubnerweg 2, 14059 Berlin, Germany.7Medical
Faculty of Latvia University, P. Stradina Clinical University Hospital, Pilsonu
Street 13, LV 1002, Riga, Latvia.8Rheumatology Department, Dubai Bone and
Joint Center, Al Razi Building, DHCC, PO Box 118855, Dubai 118855, United
Arab Emirates.9Uppsala University Hospital, Department of Medical Sciences,
Uppsala University, 751 85 Uppsala, Sweden.10Sección de Reumatologia,
Hospital General de Castellón, Avda Benicasim s/n, 12004 - Castellon, Spain.
11CentraCare, 1200 6th Avenue North, St. Cloud, MN 56301, USA.12Serviço
de Reumatologia - Hospital Universitário de Brasília, SGAN 605, Av. L2 Norte
Brasília, Brazil.13Rheumatology Institut, Srpskih Junaka 2, 18205 Niška Banja,
Serbia.14Rheumatology & Rehabilitation, Assiut University Hospital, Assiut
University, Assiut 71111, Egypt.15School of Medicine, Catholic University of
the Sacred Heart, Via Moscati 31, 00168 Rome, Italy.16Department of
Rheumatology, Kyoto First Red Cross Hospital, 15-749, Mon-machi,
Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, Japan.17Department of Rheumatology, Semmelweis
University, H-1025 Budapest Árpád f.u.7., Hungary.18Department of Physical
Medicine and Rehabilitation, Division of Rheumatology, Gazi University,
06530 Ankara, Turkey.19Faculté de Médecine et de Pharmacie, Route de la
Plage, Rabat, Morocco.20Al-Azhar University, 14 Mustafa Darwish Street, Nasr
City, Cairo, Egypt.21Department of Rheumatology, Service box 416, N-4604
Kristiansand. S, Norway.22King Christian the Xth Hospital, Toldbodgade 3,
6300 Gråsten, Denmark.23Clinica de Medicina Interna si Reumatologie,
Spitalul Clinic Sf Maria, B-dul Ion Mihalache 37-39 Sector 4, Bucuresti,
Romania.24Department of Early Arthritis, Institute of Rheumatology,
Kashirskoye shosse, 34a, Moscow, 115522, Russia.25Tartu University Hospital,
Puusepa str. 6, Tartu 50408 Estonia.26Faculdade de Medicina da
Universidade de São Paulo-FMUSP, Av Dr Arnaldo 455, CEP01246-903, São
Paulo, Brazil.27Rheumatology Section, Riverside Professional Center, 31
Riverside Drive, Sydney, NS, B1S 3N1, Canada.28Satakunta Central Hospital,
Rauman aluesairaala, Steniuksenkatu 2, 26100 Rauma, Finland.29American
Hospital Dubai, P.O. Box 5566, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.30Connolly
Hospital, Waterville Road, Blanchardstown, Dublin 15, Ireland.31Institute of
Rheumatology, Tokyo Women’s Medical University, 10-22 Kawada-cho,
Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Japan.32Kenyatta National Hospital, Hospital Road,, PO
Box 19701-00202, Nairobi, Kenya.33Rheumatic Disease Clinic, 4th floor,
Vedanta Institute of Medical Sciences Navrangpura, Ahmedabad 380009,
Gujarat, India.34Rheumatology Department, University Clinical Center of
Kosova, Kodra e diellit, Rr. II, Lamela 11/9, Prishtina, 10 000, Kosova.
35Department of Clinical Immunology, Jaipur Hospital, Lal Kothi, Jaipur Pin-
302021, India.36Shono Rheumatism Clinic, 1-10-27 Nishi-shin, Sawara-ku,
Fukuoka, Japan.37Service de Rhumatologie, CHU de Strasbourg, Hôpital
Hautepierre, Avenue Molière, BP 49, 67098 Strasbourg, France.38Department
of Rheumatology and Internal Diseases, Medical University in Bialystok, 24a
Maria Sklodowska-Curie Street, 15-276 Bialystok, Poland.39Harokopio
University and Euroclinic of Athens, Athanasiadou 7-9, 11521 Athens, Greece.
40Institute of Experimental and Clinical Medicine at Vilnius University, 3
Universiteto St, LT-01513 Vilnius, Lithuania.41Division of Rheumatology,
Hospital San Juan Bautista, Avenida Illia 200, Catamarca, CP 4700, Argentina.
42Center for Clinical and Basic Research, Tallinn, Pärna 4, 10128 Tallinn,
Estonia.43Duke of Cornwall Rheumatology Unit, Royal Cornwall Hospital,
Truro, Cornwall, TR1 3LJ, UK.
Authors’ contributions
TS, HK, and TP contributed to study design and analyses. The entire QUEST-
RA study group contributed to data collection and preparation of the
manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Competing interests
One or more authors of this article have received reimbursements, fees, or
funding from the following pharmaceutical companies: Abbott (Abbott Park,
IL, USA), Allergan, Inc. (Irvine, CA, USA), Amgen (Thousand Oaks, CA, USA),
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (Princeton, NJ, USA), Chelsea Therapeutics,
Inc. (Charlotte, NC, USA), GlaxoSmithKline (Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK), Jazz
Pharmaceuticals (Palo Alto, CA, USA), Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
(Cambridge, MA, USA), MSD (Whitehouse Station, NJ, USA), Pfizer Inc (New
York, NY, USA), Pierre Fabre Medicament (Boulogne Cedex, France), Roche
(Basel, Switzerland), sanofi-aventis (Paris, France), Schering-Plough
Corporation (Kenilworth, NJ, USA), UCB (Brussels, Belgium), and Wyeth
(Madison, NJ, USA).
Received: 11 November 2009 Revised: 12 February 2010
Accepted: 12 March 2010 Published: 12 March 2010
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doi:10.1186/ar2951
Cite this article as: Sokka et al.: Work disability remains a major
problem in rheumatoid arthritis in the 2000s: data from 32 countries in
the QUEST-RA Study. Arthritis Research & Therapy 2010 12:R42.
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