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Prior Y, Sutton C, Cotterill S, Adams J, Camacho E, Arafin N, Firth J, O'Neill T, Hough Y, Jones W, Hammond A. The effects of arthritis gloves on people with Rheumatoid Arthritis or Inflammatory Arthritis with hand pain: a study protocol for a multi-centre randomised controlled trial (the A-GLOVES trial). BMC Musculoskelet Disord 2017; 18:224. [PMID: 28558734 PMCID: PMC5450242 DOI: 10.1186/s12891-017-1583-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2017] [Accepted: 05/15/2017] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Arthritis gloves are regularly provided as part of the management of people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and undifferentiated (early) inflammatory arthritis (IA). Usually made of nylon and elastane (i.e. Lycra®), these arthritis gloves apply pressure with the aims of relieving hand pain, stiffness and improving hand function. However, a systematic review identified little evidence supporting their use. We therefore designed a trial to compare the effectiveness of the commonest type of arthritis glove provided in the United Kingdom (Isotoner gloves) (intervention) with placebo (control) gloves (i.e. larger arthritis gloves providing similar warmth to the intervention gloves but minimal pressure only) in people with these conditions. Methods Participants aged 18 years and over with RA or IA and persistent hand pain will be recruited from National Health Service Trusts in the United Kingdom. Following consent, participants will complete a questionnaire booklet, then be randomly allocated to receive intervention or placebo arthritis gloves. Within three weeks, they will be fitted with the allocated gloves by clinical specialist rheumatology occupational therapists. Twelve weeks (i.e. the primary endpoint) after completing the baseline questionnaire, participants will complete a second questionnaire, including the same measures plus additional questions to explore adherence, benefits and problems with glove-wear. A sub-sample of participants from each group will be interviewed at the end of their participation to explore their views of the gloves received. The clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the intervention, compared to placebo gloves, will be evaluated over 12 weeks. The primary outcome measure is hand pain during activity. Qualitative interviews will be thematically analysed. Discussion This study will evaluate the commonest type of arthritis glove (Isotoner) provided in the NHS (i.e. the intervention) compared to a placebo glove. The results will help occupational therapists, occupational therapy services and people with arthritis make informed choices as to the value of arthritis gloves. If effective, arthritis gloves should become more widely available in the NHS to help people with RA and IA manage hand symptoms and improve performance of daily activities, work and leisure. If not, services can determine whether to cease supplying these to reduce service costs. Trial registration ISRCTN Registry: ISRCTN25892131 Registered 05/09/2016 Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12891-017-1583-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yeliz Prior
- Centre for Health Sciences Research (OT), University of Salford, Frederick Road, L701 Allerton Building, Salford, Greater Manchester, M6 6PU, UK.,Mid Cheshire NHS Trust, Leighton Hospital, Leighton, Crewe, UK
| | - Chris Sutton
- Lancashire Clinical Trials Unit, UCLAN, Preston, UK
| | - Sarah Cotterill
- Centre for Biostatistics, School of Health Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Jo Adams
- Health Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - Elizabeth Camacho
- Centre for Health Economics, Division of Population Health, Health Services Research, and Primary Care, School of Health Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Nazina Arafin
- Centre for Health Sciences Research (OT), University of Salford, Frederick Road, L701 Allerton Building, Salford, Greater Manchester, M6 6PU, UK
| | - Jill Firth
- Pennine Musculoskeletal Partnership Ltd, Oldham, UK
| | - Terence O'Neill
- Arthritis Research UK Centre for Epidemiology, University of Manchester & NIHR Manchester Musculoskeletal Biomedical Research Unit, Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester Academic Health Sciences Centre, Manchester, UK
| | - Yvonne Hough
- St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, St Helens Hospital, St Helens, UK
| | | | - Alison Hammond
- Centre for Health Sciences Research (OT), University of Salford, Frederick Road, L701 Allerton Building, Salford, Greater Manchester, M6 6PU, UK.
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