Arthritis and rheumatism
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Arthritis and rheumatism · Dec 2009
Randomized Controlled TrialA patient's perspective on multidisciplinary treatment gain for fibromyalgia: an indicator for pre-post treatment effects?
Increasing attention is devoted to the patient's perspective in clinical research and practice. However, the relationship between the patient's view on treatment progress and standardized pre-post changes in health outcomes is not well understood. The objective of this study was to investigate whether the patient's perception of treatment gain converges with pre-post treatment effects of a multidisciplinary treatment as assessed by standardized self-report measures. ⋯ Results suggest that the patient's perception of treatment gain and pre-post changes in outcomes during treatment assess different aspects of the patient's treatment progress, particularly with regard to psychological functioning. Future research on clinical improvements should consider the patient's perception of treatment gain as an independent and clinically relevant outcome, in addition to standardized trial data of pre-post assessments of health outcomes.