- Physicians’ responses regarding the incidence and effects of RHD and thumb CMC arthritis.
| Questions | Score out of 5 on the Likert scale Median (IQR) | P-value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Family medicine (n=46) | Orthopedic surgeons (n=28) | Rheumatologists (n=28) | ||
| Q1- Based on your current practice, how frequently are you seeing cases of RHD? | 2.50 (2.00–3.00) | 2.00 (2.00–3.00) | 3.00 (3.00–4.75) | <0.001* |
| Q2- Based on your current practice, how frequently are you seeing cases of thumb CMC arthritis? | 2.00 (2.00–2.00) | 2.00 (2.00–3.00) | 3.00 (3.00–4.00) | <0.001* |
| Q3- How much do you think that RHD affects patients’ daily function? | 4.00 (4.00–5.00) | 4.00 (3.25–5.00) | 5.00 (4.00–5.00) | 0.783 |
| Q4- How much do you think that thumb CMC arthritis affects patients’ daily function? | 4.00 (4.00–5.00) | 4.00 (3.25–5.00) | 4.00 (3.25–5.00) | 0.868 |
| Q5- Do you think that RHD is a cause of psychological distress to your patients? | 4.00 (3.75–5.00) | 4.00 (3.00–5.00) | 4.50 (3.25–5.00) | 0.493 |
| Q6- Do you think that thumb CMC arthritis is a cause of psychological distress to your patients? | 4.00 (3.75–5.00) | 4.00 (3.00–4.00) | 4.00 (3.00–5.00) | 0.153 |
Note: Data are expressed as median and IQR. Q 1,2: Always = 5 / Often = 4 / Sometimes = 3 / Rarely = 2 / Never = 1. Q 3–6: Strongly agree = 5 / Agree = 4 / Neither agree nor disagree = 3 / Disagree = 2 / Strongly disagree = 1.
RHD: rheumatoid hand deformity, CMC: carpometacarpal, IQR: interquartile range
↵* Statistical significance is set at p<0.05.