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The Rheumatoid Foot

Edited by: Dr Catherine Bowen

Investigation of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) over the past decade has led to important advances in understanding of the clinical characteristics and pathological mechanisms of the disease. Consequently there has been a major shift in the medical management of RA in advocating early, targeted and tight control of disease. Research that investigates the foot manifestations of RA has appropriately followed this direction too and there is an emerging body of international evidence that highlights the burden of RA related foot complaints.

To this end and to coincide with the World Congress of Podiatry, October 2013, we have created this special collection from selected articles published within Journal of Foot and Ankle Research. The collection not only exemplifies this emerging body of evidence but also highlights significant evidence gaps in foot care for patients with RA across the globe.

The challenge now for researchers in this field is to develop robust measures that can reliably detect changes and thus monitor RA disease state within the foot. A further challenge is for clinicians to embrace this evidence, improve access to foot care and enable early detection of disease and targeted tight control of foot disease with effective evidence based interventions.

  1. Rheumatic conditions can have a significant impact on the feet and requires effective management. Podiatric involvement in the management of rheumatic conditions has previously been found to be inadequate in a...

    Authors: Nina Lansdowne, Angela Brenton-Rule, Matthew Carroll and Keith Rome
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2015 8:14
  2. Foot problems are common in adults with inflammatory arthritis and therapeutic footwear can be effective in managing arthritic foot problems. Accessing appropriate footwear has been identified as a major barri...

    Authors: Angela Brenton-Rule, Gordon J Hendry, Georgina Barr and Keith Rome
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2014 7:36
  3. An increased awareness of patients’ and parents’ care preferences regarding foot care is desirable from a clinical perspective as such information may be utilised to optimise care delivery. The aim of this stu...

    Authors: Gordon J Hendry, Debbie E Turner, Janet Gardner-Medwin, Paula K Lorgelly and James Woodburn
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2014 7:10
  4. It is unclear if podiatric foot care for people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in New South Wales (NSW) meets current clinical recommendations. The objective of this study was to survey podiatrists’ perception...

    Authors: Gordon J Hendry, Kathryn A Gibson, Kevin Pile, Luke Taylor, Verona du Toit, Joshua Burns and Keith Rome
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2013 6:35
  5. There is little indication that foot health services in Australia are meeting modern day recommendations for Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) patients. The overall objective of this study was to explore the current s...

    Authors: Gordon J Hendry, Kathryn A Gibson, Kevin Pile, Luke Taylor, Verona Du Toit, Joshua Burns and Keith Rome
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2013 6:34
  6. In the last decade there has been a significant expansion in the body of knowledge on the effects of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) on the foot and the management of these problems. Aligned with this has been the d...

    Authors: Anita E Williams, Andrea S Graham, Samantha Davies and Catherine J Bowen
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2013 6:23
  7. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the Arthritis Research UK funded graduate internship scheme for podiatrists and to explore the experiences of interns and mentors.

    Authors: Serena Naidoo, Catherine Bowen, Nigel Arden and Anthony Redmond
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2013 6:15
  8. The foot and ankle are frequently affected in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). One of the negative consequences of RA on the physical function of patients is a decrease in muscle strength. However, lit...

    Authors: Matthew Carroll, William Joyce, Angela Brenton-Rule, Nicola Dalbeth and Keith Rome
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2013 6:10
  9. Patient education is an important component of foot health management for people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The content and strategies for delivery require investigation in relation to the patients’ needs...

    Authors: Andrea S Graham, Alison Hammond, Steven Walmsley and Anita E Williams
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2012 5:23
  10. Postural stability can be measured in clinical and research settings using portable plantar pressure systems. People with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have decreased postural stability compared to non-RA populati...

    Authors: Angela Brenton-Rule, Joshua Mattock, Matthew Carroll, Nicola Dalbeth, Sandra Bassett, Hylton B Menz and Keith Rome
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2012 5:21
  11. Plantar pressures are commonly used as clinical measures, especially to determine optimum foot orthotic design. In rheumatoid arthritis (RA) high plantar foot pressures have been linked to metatarsophalangeal ...

    Authors: Catherine J Bowen, David Culliford, Ruth Allen, James Beacroft, Anita Gay, Lindsey Hooper, Jane Burridge, Christopher J Edwards and Nigel K Arden
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2011 4:25
  12. Studies have reported that women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are not wearing NHS supplied therapeutic footwear; therefore it is likely they are wearing footwear sourced through retailers. Previous research ...

    Authors: Serena Naidoo, Stephanie Anderson, Joanna Mills, Stephanie Parsons, Stephanie Breeden, Emma Bevan, Camilla Edwards and Simon Otter
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2011 4:21
  13. Conservative management of foot problems in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) may consist of the prescription of customised foot orthoses. Indications for foot orthoses are not clear and the effectivenes...

    Authors: Marike van der Leeden, Karin Fiedler, Annelies Jonkman, Rutger Dahmen, Leo D Roorda, Dirkjan van Schaardenburg and Joost Dekker
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2011 4:8
  14. Footwear has been accepted as a therapeutic intervention for the foot affected by rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Evidence relating to the objective assessment of footwear in patients with RA is limited. The aims o...

    Authors: Renee N Silvester, Anita E Williams, Nicola Dalbeth and Keith Rome
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2010 3:24
  15. Therapeutic footwear is recommended for those people with severe foot problems associated with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). However, it is known that many do not wear them. Although previous European studies hav...

    Authors: Anita E Williams, Christopher J Nester, Michael I Ravey, Anke Kottink and Morey-Gaspar Klapsing
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2010 3:23
  16. The foot is often the first area of the body to be systematically affected by rheumatoid arthritis. The multidimensional consequences of foot problems for patients can be subjectively evaluated using patient-r...

    Authors: Steven Walmsley, Anita E Williams, Mike Ravey and Andrea Graham
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2010 3:12
  17. Over the past decade there have been significant advances in the clinical understanding and care of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Major paradigm changes include earlier disease detection and introduction of thera...

    Authors: James Woodburn, Kym Hennessy, Martijn PM Steultjens, Iain B McInnes and Deborah E Turner
    Citation: Journal of Foot and Ankle Research 2010 3:8