Lower-limb muscle strength in women with rheumatoid arthritis and women without the disease: is there a difference?

Abstract

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic inflammatory disease, which is chronic and affects the joints’ synovial membrane. Among the physical aptitude qualities that can be impaired in individuals with RA, muscle strength deserves attention. It is directly associated with the capacity of performing all activities of daily living, from the simplest to the most complex. The aim of this study was to assess the muscle strength of the lower limbs of women with RA. Seventeen volunteers with RA (I, II and III functional classes) and 17 women without the disease, with mean age corresponding to 54.7+6.63 years, underwent the one-maximum repetition test to assess knee flexors and extensors, hip abductors and adductors. We used Student’s T test to analyze the data, considering significant p values < 0.05. In all assessments, the group of women with RA showed lower values when compared with women without the disease. However, there were no statistically significant differences between the groups. The descriptive levels obtained from the comparison between the groups’ muscle strength were: knee extensors, p=0.224; knee flexors, p=0.467; hip abductors, p=0.190 and hip adductors, p=0.127. The muscle strength of the lower limbs does not differ between women with RA (I, II and III functional classes) and women without the disease.