Longitudinal analysis of quality of life in patients with undifferentiated connective tissue diseases

Michele Iudici, Rosaria Irace, Antonella Riccardi, Giovanna Cuomo, Serena Vettori, Gabriele Valentini Rheumatology Section, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Second University of Naples, Naples, Italy Introduction/objectives: To prospectively assess the quality of life (QoL) of patients affected by undifferentiated connective tissue diseases (UCTDs) and to identify factors associated with changes over time.Patients and methods: A total of 46 consecutive UCTD patients completed the Short-Form 36 (SF-36) questionnaire at presentation and then yearly. At each 6-month visit, all patients underwent a detailed history taking and a laboratory and physical assessment, in order to follow the evolution of the disease over time and to assess the the co-existence of fibromyalgia.Results: At presentation, scores lower than the average of the general population were detected in 34 (74%) and 41 (89%) patients in the physical and mental domains, respectively. No difference between patients with and without Raynaud’s phenomenon was detected. Fibromyalgia was the only independent variable associated with an impaired physical component summary score (p = 0.0009). No patient feature was found to be associated with the basal mental component summary score. During 24 months of follow-up, a significant improvement (ie, a change ≥5 from baseline) in physical component summary and mental component summary scores was observed in 14 (33.3%) and 20 (43.4%) patients, respectively. Patients who significantly improved in the physical domain more frequently had a history of glucocorticoids intake (p