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. 2003 Nov;42(11):1287-94.
doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/keg369. Epub 2003 Jun 16.

A biopsychosocial model of pain and depression in rheumatoid arthritis: a 12-month longitudinal study

T Covic  1 , B Adamson, D Spencer, G Howe
Affiliations

A biopsychosocial model of pain and depression in rheumatoid arthritis: a 12-month longitudinal study

T Covic et al. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2003 Nov.

Abstract

Objective: To cross-validate a biopsychosocial model using physical disability, helplessness and passive coping to predict depression and pain in rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Methods: Clinical and psychological measures were collected from 157 RA patients at three time points over a period of 12 months. Path analysis was used for cross-sectional and longitudinal prediction of depression and pain.

Results: Helplessness and passive coping were found to be significant mediators of the relationship between the physical disability and future depression and pain. Cross-sectionally, the predictive model could account for 52-94% of the variance of pain and 37-71% of the variance of depression. Longitudinally, the predictive model could explain 29-43% of the variance of pain and 21-33% of the variance of depression.

Conclusions: These results suggest that physical disability, helplessness and passive coping have a significant impact on the levels of pain and depression experienced by RA patients.

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