Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 23, 2025
04:50
Preliminary Study on Acupuncture Combined with Grain-sized Moxibustion for Treating Rheumatoid Arthritis with Finger Joint Pain
Published on: May 16, 2025
454
It Is Like a Puppet Show-Experiences of Rheumatoid Arthritis Among Adult Chinese: A Qualitative Study
Su-Hui Chen1,2, Kuang-Hui Yu2, Yi-Chun Kao3
1Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, Taoyuan City.
Clinical Nursing Research
|August 18, 2021
Summary
Patients with rheumatoid arthritis experience chronic pain, stiffness, and functional limitations. They cope by adjusting their outlook and comparing their lives to others to maintain a positive perspective.
Area of Science:
- Rheumatology
- Qualitative Health Research
Background:
- Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a progressive joint disease.
- Patient experiences with RA are under-documented, particularly in Taiwan.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the personal experiences of patients with rheumatoid arthritis in Taiwan.
Main Methods:
- Qualitative study utilizing face-to-face interviews.
- Content analysis of data from 30 RA patients (January-May 2019).
Main Results:
- Three emergent themes: "physical suffering" (chronic pain, stiffness), "limitations of abilities" (loss of function, social restrictions), and "coexisting with the disease" (positive perspective through outlook changes and social comparison).
- Participants were predominantly female (90%) with a mean age of 57 years.
Conclusions:
- Understanding patient experiences is crucial for comprehensive RA care.
- Patients develop coping mechanisms to manage physical and social challenges of RA.
- Interventions should address both physical symptoms and psychosocial impact of rheumatoid arthritis.
