Truth unveiled by time and the marbled definition of D2T-RA: retrospective analysis on the persistence of the difficult-to-treat status among refractory RA patients.

Background: The current EULAR definition of difficult-to-treat rheumatoid arthritis (D2T-RA) identifies patients with active disease refractory to multiple treatments at a single time point, without considering the persistence of this condition over time. The study aimed to assess difficult-to-treat rheumatoid arthritis (D2T-RA) over 12 months, considering persistence over time rather than a single time point, in a real-life cohort.

Methods: In a single-center real-life cohort, demographic and clinic data were cross-sectionally collected for each patient at baseline and retrospectively over the previous 12 months bimonthly.

Disease activity and disease-related factors are drivers of patient global assessment in rheumatoid arthritis: a real-life cross-sectional study.

Despite that the Patient Global Assessment (PGA) is widely used for measuring Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) disease activity to define the remission state of the disease, the primary contributors influencing patients' ratings are still debated. This study aims to determine which clinical, sociodemographic and lifestyle-related contextual factors might be key drivers of PGA in RA. This single-center cross-sectional study recruited 393 consecutive adult RA patients.

Clinical and Biological Factors Are Associated with Treatment-Resistant Depression.

Background: Treatment-resistant depression (TRD) is a debilitating condition associated with unmet clinical needs. Few studies have explored clinical characteristics and serum biomarkers associated with TRD.

Aims: We investigated whether there were differences in clinical and biochemical variables between patients affected by TRD than those without.

COVID-19 related poor mental health and sleep disorders in rheumatic patients: a citizen science project.

Background: Patients with chronic rheumatic diseases (RDs) are more vulnerable and the containment measures related to the COVID-19 pandemic might have severe psychological consequences. We investigated the presence of and risk factors associated with poor mental health, sleep disorders among RDs during the pandemic.

Methods: This cross-sectional Italian citizen science project evaluated the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in patients with RDs.