TITLE:
Treatment Adherence of Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis during COVID-19 Pandemic
AUTHORS:
Syamasis Bandyopadhyay, Susobhan Mondal
KEYWORDS:
COVID-19, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Janus Kinase, JAK Inhibitors, Disease-Modifying Antirheumatic Drugs, Adherence, Cost
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Rheumatology and Autoimmune Diseases,
Vol.11 No.3,
August
24,
2021
ABSTRACT: India is no exception to the economic setback due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Loss of jobs and income dramatically impacts the health care cost of chronic disease management. Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic condition with a high-cost implication. With the outbreak of COVID-19, there is uncertainty about continuing immunosuppressive therapy for rheumatoid arthritis for several reasons. In this milieu, we undertook a prospective observational study to observe the use of Janus Kinase (JAK) inhibitors in a hospital-based rheumatology service in Eastern India during the pandemic period (21 March 2020 to 31 July 2020). Forty-two patients with rheumatoid arthritis were receiving treatment with JAK inhibitors. Twenty-four patients visited the Outpatient Department (OPD) during the COVID-19 pandemic. All of them were COVID-negative, but few of the patients had influenza-like symptoms. Patients faced up to a 25% reduction in their annual income during the COVID-19 pandemic. Of 24 patients, four patients had stopped treatment with JAK inhibitors owing to financial constraints or initial non-availability of medications during the lockdown. In this study, adherence to JAK inhibitors was substantially high even in the face of income curtailment during the COVID-19 pandemic.