Influence of Biological Therapeutics on Patient-Reported Quality-Of-Life Outcomes (Whoqol-Bref), Functional Scores and Disease Activity among Croatian Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis: Our Experience.

BACKGROUND: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic and disabling disease with a great impact on the quality of life (QOL). The aim of this study was to assess QOL and health in RA patients treated with biological disease-modifying drugs (bDMARDs) as opposed to those treated with conventional synthetic DMARDs (csDMARDs). We analysed four domains of QOL: physical health (D1), mental health (D2), social relationships (D3) and one's surroundings (D4); as well as general quality of life (W1), general state of health (W2), and disease activity and physical disability. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Seventy-seven RA patients (group A=29 on bDMARDs, group B=48 on csDMARDs) were enrolled in the study. QOL was evaluated using WHO questionnaire (WHOQOL-BREF), disease activity using Disease Activity Score 28C-reactive protein (DAS28CRP) and functional status using Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ). RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference of mean values in the four domains of QOL, nor in the general QOL, between groups A and B. There was also no statistically significant difference regarding RA activity (3.51 vrs 3.54, p=0.56). However, we have found that the variable of the general state of health domain was statistically significantly higher in group B (2.66 vrs 2.89, p=0.001), while HAQ was statistically significantly higher in group A (1.19 vrs 1.07, p=0.018), as well as the duration of RA (6.25vrs 3.75 years, p=0.0006). Statistically significant correlation was found between HAQ and W2, disease duration and D3 in group A and DAS28CRP and D1, D2, W2 and HAQ and D1 and D2 in group B. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that the inclusion of bDMARDs in the treatment regimen was overdue, with RA already advancing with developed functional disability, which prevented the achievement of the primary goals of treatment: low disease activity or remission and the improvement of patient's QOL.

Will the war for the Croatian Homeland War veterans ever end?

The aim of this paper is to show the psychological consequences of participation in the Homeland War and experienced trauma which can indirectly be seen through drawing even after more than 15 years after the war had ended. The research was conducted on a sample of 125 patients of both genders treated in the Daily Hospital program of University Hospital Dubrava, Psychiatry Clinics. All the tested had trauma in their medical history and all of them met the PTSD diagnostic criteria, 75 examinees participated in the Homeland War and they represent the veteran group, and 50 examinees went through a stressful situation during peacetime and they represent the civilian group. All the examinees had to make two individual drawings, and the task was to portray feelings of term "love" (first drawing) and term "hate" (second drawing). They could choose motifs and colors freely. When portraying the term love, choice of motifs between the civilian and the veteran group wasn't considerably different, and only a small number of male veteran population (6.6%) drawings hinted at the connection with the Homeland War. The results between two groups are completely different in portraying the term hate. As much as 76% examinees from the veteran group have unequivocally and directly decided to portray wartime motifs, unlike the civilian group whose use of wartime motifs was just 10%. When choosing color, nearly 90% of the veteran group used neutral and cool colors to portray the term hate.

Change of diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder related to compensation-seeking.

AIM: To explore the change in the diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) related to the implementation of the new national regulation on compensation-seeking by war veterans in Croatia. METHODS: The study included 225 compensation-seeking war veterans who were psychiatrically assessed and diagnosed on three different occasions. The first diagnosis was made by a local psychiatrist when a veteran sought psychiatric help for the first time. The second psychiatric diagnosis was established during the veteran's psychiatric treatment, and the third one was made by an independent expert team in charge of the psychiatric assessment for compensation purposes. The expert examination included structured diagnostic procedure and analysis of military service data. The diagnoses established on three different points were compared. RESULTS: There were significant differences between the diagnoses of mental disorders made at three different occasions in compensation-seeking war veterans. Six different diagnostic categories of mental disorders were confirmed. The diagnosis changed in 134 (59.5%) out of 225 veterans, mainly in the categories of PTSD and personality changes due to catastrophic experience, during their psychiatric treatment in the 2000-2002 period, when the new regulation for compensation was implemented. PTSD diagnosis remained unchanged at all three psychiatric assessments in only 7.5% of the veterans, whereas the diagnosis of a mental disorder remained unchanged in 37 (16.4%) veterans. Experts' confirmation of PTSD or PTSD comorbid with other mental disorders positively correlated with the number of hospitalizations. CONCLUSION: Inconsistencies in the diagnosis of PTSD could be related to the different diagnostic criteria and the course of illness. Psychiatric examination for compensation purposes should be independent and integrate all relevant data for making a complete assessment. Compensation-seeking policy, represented by new regulations, could be a source of bias in diagnostic outcome.