Delay in diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis: reasons and trends over a decade

Delay in diagnosis and treatment initiation often lead to poorer outcomes in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Most of the data on delay in diagnosis and management are from western population with no data from India. Additionally, with improved health care services, whether the delay has changed over years is not known. In this longitudinal observational study, we investigated delay to diagnosis and disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) initiation over past 9 years.

Patients aged ≥ 18 years having RA fulfilling 2010 ACR/EULAR criteria were enrolled from January to June in years 2012, 2017 and 2021. Diagnoses received before presenting to clinic, socioeconomic status, educational level and other demographic variables were recorded.

Each year, 323 patients (mean age 49.5-52.01 years) were enrolled. There was a significant reduction in delay in diagnosis from a median (IQR) of 36 (12-84, range 1-288) months in 2012 to 12 (4-36, range 1-180) months in 2017 and 10 (5-24, range 1-120) months) in 2021 (p < 0.0001). A significant improvement in time to initiating DMARDs from 2012 [48 (24-96) months] to 2017 [12 (6-36) months] (p < 0.0001) and from 2017 to 2021 [12 (5-24) months] (p = 0.03) was seen. Higher education, more patients opting for treatment from rheumatologists, and urbanisation contributed significantly to improvement in delay. There was no impact of age or gender on delay.

Delay in diagnosis has improved significantly between 2012 and 2021. However, delay still remains long as most patients miss the 3-month therapeutic window. Future work focussing on reasons for delays in the patient pathway could help improve consultation pathways in India.