Sustaining physical activity levels in inflammatory joint disease
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Sustaining healthy physical activity levels in patients with inflammatory joint disease.
IRAS ID
163419
Contact name
Kirsty J Bell
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
4 years, 11 months, 30 days
Research summary
Physical exercise is beneficial to patients with inflammatory joint diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. There is evidence for improved health status and quality of life after exercise therapy. Crucially, there is also evidence that regular exercise does not have harmful side effects to arthritis patients in terms of increased pain, joint damage or disease activity.
However, despite the proven health benefits, many patients with inflammatory arthritis do not exercise regularly. The exact reasons for this are not fully known. It is also unknown what factors make it easier or harder for patients with arthritis to sustain a healthy, physically active lifestyle once they have finished a NHS-provided exercise therapy programme.
Greater Glasgow and Clyde (GG&C) provide a 12 week Inflammatory Arthritis Exercise Programme (IAEP) in all GG&C acute hospitals. Patients who have a medical diagnosis of an inflammatory joint disease and are safe to exercise are eligible to attend.
Patients starting the IAEP will be invited to participate. Those that consent will be followed up over a 15 month period with an extra 3 assessment sessions, when compared to routine care within the IAEP, for further outcome measures.
The purpose of this study is to identify barriers and facilitators for patients with inflammatory arthritis to sustain healthy physical activity levels following participation in NHS exercise therapy. It is to also chart the health status and health-related quality of life of participants from the start of a NHS-delivered exercise therapy program until 12 months post-completion; and assess how these are affected by their physical activity patterns.
This will enable clinicians, and patients, to actively target these barriers and overcome them so that patients can reach healthy physical activity levels in the future.
REC name
South West - Cornwall & Plymouth Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/SW/1183
Date of REC Opinion
27 Jan 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion