Self-administered joint counts and standard joint counts in the assessmentof rheumatoid arthritis

Objective. To determine the comparability of a text to a mannequin format f or the assessment of joint counts (JC) among patients with rheumatoid arthr itis (Rh) participating in a randomized clinical trial (RCT). Methods. A subgroup of patients participating in the MIRA (Minocycline in R A) RCT completed self-administered JC and joint scores (JS), which were com pared to those of a trained assessor. Results, JC and JS data were consistently higher for the patient than for t he assessor. Higher correlations were obtained for JC than for JS. Conclusion. Our data suggest JC can be used in the context of clinical tria ls or in the clinical setting, but are not interchangeable with trained ass essor JC.