ABSTRACT

Objective: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory, a multisystem disease characterized by progressive, irreversible joint and bone destruction leading to disability, loss of function, significant morbidity, and premature mortality. Family history of rheumatoid arthritis is a strong influence for RA. The aim of the study was to determine the relationship between family history and personality traits of patients with RA.

Methods: This cross-sectional observational study was carried out on 60 Saudi patients with newly or previously diagnosed RA according to the 2010 American College of Rheumatology‑European League Against Rheumatism Criteria.. They all were followed from the month of January 2017 to December 2020 in the Rheumatology Clinic of King Majmaah Hospital (KKMH).

Results: The mean age of the patients was 47.87 ± 11.55 years. The preponderance of all them included female 52 vs.8; female: male ratio, 6.5:1; 23.3% of the patients had a family history of RA. The incidence rates of extra-articular manifestations of RA and joint deformities were 18(30%) and 8 (13.3), respectively. The DAS28 score for 37 patients (61.7%) was between 3.2 and 5.1, and 23 patients (38.3%) had a score >5.1. Further, 66.7% and 78.3% of the patients were affirmative for rheumatoid factor (RF) and anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (anti-CCP) correspondingly.

Conclusion: Positive family history was more common among rural RA patients than among other RA populations. No significant association was observed between family history and characteristic features of the studied groups.

Keywords: Rheumatoid arthritis, Family history, Characteristics features, Saudi patients