Effect of Ramadan fasting on disease activity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis presenting in tertiary care hospital

  • Samara Siddique King Edward Medical University
  • M. Yaser Imran East Medical Ward, Mayo Hospital, Lahore
  • Muhammad Naeem Afzal East Medical Ward, Mayo Hospital, Lahore
  • Uzma Malik East Medical Ward, Mayo Hospital, Lahore
Keywords: Disease Activity Score, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Ramadan, Fasting

Abstract

Background and objective: Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is a common inflammatory disorder affected by various factors, including fasting. The objective of the study was to establish the effect of Ramadan fasting on DAS 28 in Rheumatoid Arthritis patients.

Methods: In this observational cohort study done in department of rheumatology, Mayo hospital, Lahore, between May 2019 to July 2019, 240 patients were divided in fasting (n=120) and non-fasting cohort (n=120) based on their own choice. Mean DAS-28 scores before and after Ramadan was compared in both cohorts with appropriate statistical analyses.

Results: Two hundred forty participants, (74 males, 166 females), were recruited. Baseline DAS of fasting group was significantly low (4.35±0.9) as compared to non-fasting group (5.07±0.91). Paired t-test showed statistically significant improvement in fasting and non-fasting groups in total and in both genders (p=0.000). Mean improvement in DAS was numerically greater and statistically significant (p=0.000) in non-fasting group (1.08±0.62) as compared to fasting ones (0.86±0.61). Post-Ramadan DAS was, however, significantly low in fasting group (3.49±0.9) versus non-fasting group (3.98±1.0) (p=0.000).

Conclusion: DAS 28 score decreased in both non-fasting as well as fasting patients of RA during the month of Ramadan. RA patients with moderate disease activity, who want to keep fast, can be allowed to do so without any fear of disease worsening.

doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.36.5.2099

How to cite this:
Siddique S, Imran Y, Afzal MN, Malik U. Effect of Ramadan fasting on disease activity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis presenting in tertiary care hospital. Pak J Med Sci. 2020;36(5):1032-1035. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.36.5.2099

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Author Biographies

M. Yaser Imran, East Medical Ward, Mayo Hospital, Lahore

Assistant Professsor of Rheumatology

Muhammad Naeem Afzal, East Medical Ward, Mayo Hospital, Lahore

Associate Professor Medicine

Uzma Malik, East Medical Ward, Mayo Hospital, Lahore

Assistant Professor Medicine

Published
2020-06-27
How to Cite
Siddique, S., Imran, M. Y., Afzal, M. N., & Malik, U. (2020). Effect of Ramadan fasting on disease activity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis presenting in tertiary care hospital. Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences, 36(5). https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.36.5.2099