Life satisfaction, generalized sense of self-efficacy and acceptance of illness in rheumatoid arthritis patients depending on age and severity of the disease

Abstract

IntroductionRheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune condition characterized by periods of exacerbation (physical limitations, depressed mood, depressive states and decreased life satisfaction) and remission (hope of health improvement). Our objective was to present social functioning of RA patients taking into consideration their age and employing selected determinants: satisfaction with life, generalized sense of self-efficacy and acceptance of illness.Material and methodsStandardized tools were employed: the Satisfaction with Life Scale, Generalized Self Efficacy Scale and Acceptance of Illness Scale. The study group included 46 patients with RA 18-45 years of life and 54 above 60 years of life. The control group consisted of 24 non-RA subjects in every group .ResultsRheumatoid arthritis patients in the period of disease exacerbation reported low and moderate levels of satisfaction with life, in the patients in remission period the score was moderate, while the control group subjects described their level of satisfaction with life as high and moderate. The level of acceptance of illness was described by the RA patients in the period of disease exacerbation as 20.4/40 points; the patients in remission defined their level of acceptance of illness as 29.38/40 points. The patients with RA exacerbation showed a low sense of self-efficacy, yet a large group of such patients also presented high self-efficacy levels and the majority of the RA subjects in remission reported a high sense of self-efficacy.ConclusionsIn the RA patients, satisfaction with life, generalized sense of self-efficacy and acceptance of illness were closely related and affected their general psychosocial functioning.