Perceptions of Doppler ultrasound in RA patients
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Perceptions of Doppler ultrasound scan among South Asian patients with rheumatoid arthritis
IRAS ID
251773
Contact name
Kanta Kumar
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
The University of Birmingham
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
NA, NA
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 9 months, 26 days
Research summary
Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is a condition with no cure. RA costs the NHS in England around GBP 560 million a year with some resulting to poor quality of life and loss of work productivity. In a recent British Society for Rheumatology (BSR) national audit survey assessing the delivery of care in early inflammatory arthritis clinics, I found that newly diagnosed patients from Black and minority ethnic (BME) backgrounds have higher level of disability, pain and fatigue compared with White British patients. Therefore, patient engagement is vital for optimising clinical outcomes.
Window of opportunity - My previous research among BME backgrounds demonstrate illness representations and treatment beliefs to be more powerful factors at explaining non-adherence to RA treatments. My work thus identified potentially modifiable patient beliefs as key correlates of adherence to medication. Observations of clinical interactions revealed that patients from BME backgrounds found visual representation used during Doppler Ultrasound Scanning (DUS) session to be useful in helping them to understand the disease process. Through an explorative qualitative vignette study with 20-25 patients, We want to understand what aspects of using DUS are responsible for these benefits and how it can be harnessed to help more RA patients.
REC name
West Midlands - South Birmingham Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
18/WM/0333
Date of REC Opinion
1 Nov 2018
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion