MCRC Project 3 - PI Dunlop

CURRENT MCRC PROJECT

Physical Activity, Disability, and Health Utility in Rheumatic Disease

Nearly 21 million Americans are disabled as a result of their arthritis, making arthritis a primary cause of disability in the US.  Knee osteoarthritis (OA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are major causes of arthritis-related disability.  Since medical costs due to arthritis are strongly driven by disability, identifying an implementable physical activity intervention that reduces disability among persons with arthritis may provide an effective strategy to contain rising health care costs due to arthritis.  

Our ongoing project examines disability progression and economic issues relevant to the promotion of physical activity in rheumatic disease in the “ Increasing Motivation for Physical Activity in Arthritis Clinical Trial” (IMPAACT), a randomized clinical trial (RCT).  This trial tests the effectiveness in terms of health status of a physical activity management program to augment physician physical activity promotion (intervention group) compared to only physician promotion of physical activity (control group) in adults with RA and knee OA.  

The project adds 1) disability measures, 2) a community-based health utility assessment of health related quality of life, and 3) medical utilization measures to the IMPAACT study.  These measures extend this trial beyond clinical outcomes to factors relevant to public policy evaluations of this intervention.  The project will determine if a physical activity management program is a cost-effective intervention that reduces disability progression and improves health related quality of life of persons with arthritis.