Trial reportSeminars in arthritis and rheumatism2022
A randomized controlled trial evaluating the effects of social networking on chronic disease management in rheumatoid arthritis.
Trial report in Seminars in arthritis and rheumatism, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- The 2026 British Society for Rheumatology guideline for pain management in people with inflammatory arthritis.Rheumatology (Oxford, England) · 2026Guideline
- Evaluation of the Effectiveness and Safety of Telemedicine in Rheumatoid Arthritis: Meta-analysis.Applied clinical informatics · 2025Pooled it
- Randomized controlled trials of digital health interventions for rheumatic disease management: a systematic review.Bulletin of the World Health Organization · 2025Pooled it
- The impact of peer support groups on the psychological well-being of patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a randomized controlled trial.Scientific reports · 2025Trial
- The Role of Emotions in Health Literacy and Patient Education: Trends, Technologies, and Future Opportunities-A Scoping Review.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- A mixed studies systematic review on the health and wellbeing effects, and underlying mechanisms, of online support groups for chronic conditions.Communications psychology · 2025Article
- Impact of Biological Therapies on Quality of Life in Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Narrative Review.Open access rheumatology : research and reviews · 2025Review
- Involving patients as research partners in research in rheumatology: a literature review in 2023.RMD open · 2023Review
- Peer Support in Rheumatic Diseases: A Narrative Literature Review.Patient preference and adherence · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
12 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveSocial networking has been shown to improve health outcomes in certain patient populations. While patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) increasingly use social networking to communicate with peers, the effects of these interactions are largely unknown.
methodsIn a randomized controlled trial, we compared RA patients who participated in a social networking group moderated by peer leaders and who had access to a static website offering RA materials with a control group, who only had access to the website. The primary outcomes were patients' RA knowledge, self-efficacy and empowerment. Secondary outcomes included participation in desired health behaviors, and satisfaction with peer support, among others. Follow-up assessments were conducted at 3 and 6 months. Participants who never signed in were excluded from the primary analysis.
results105 participants were randomized to each group. Mean age was 52 (±12.4) and 92.4% were females. Knowledge scores improved in both groups, but only in the control group the differences observed at 3 and 6 months were significant (p≤0.02). Self-efficacy scores also improved in both groups, but only the differences observed at 6 months in the Facebook group were significant (p=0.02). When comparing groups, at 3 months the knowledge improvements observed in the control group were greater compared with those observed in the Facebook group (mean difference 0.4 versus 0.1; respectively, p=0.03). No other differences were observed in secondary outcomes between the 2 groups, except in peer support satisfaction. The Facebook® group reported greater peer support satisfaction in 3 out 5 subscales compared with the control group (p≤0.04).
conclusionPeer support satisfaction was higher in participants using an online social network, but this was not translated into greater disease knowledge or empowerment.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.