How can fatigue be assessed?
Fatigue is an important facet of RA that should be included in patient assessment, said Sara Hewlett, Ph.D., professor of nursing at the University of the West of England in Bristol.
Speaking during a session organized by the BSR’s Specialist Interest Group in RA, she noted that there are three reasons why fatigue is important to assess: It is important to patients, it provides information beyond disease activity, and it responds to several interventions, including physical activity, psychological strategies, and biologic medications.
Dr. Hewlett noted that there have been many instruments used to try to assess fatigue in clinical trials, but none was specifically developed to assess fatigue in patients with RA, and many were not developed using recommended methodology. That was until the development and validation of the Bristol Rheumatoid Arthritis Fatigue Numerical Rating Scales (BRAF NRS).
On the BRAF NRS, patients circle a number from 0 to 10 to indicate the average level of fatigue that they have experienced, the impact that fatigue has had on them, and how well they have subsequently coped, in the past 7 days.
Ms. Druce said she had no financial disclosures. One of her coauthors had received honoraria and research funding from Pfizer and had been a consultant for Merck Sharp & Dohme. Ms. Hewlett said she had no disclosures other than helping to develop the BRAF NRS.