For patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), anxiety increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, as did suspected depression, according to a letter to the editor published in Rheumatology. Investigators examined the prevalence of anxiety and depression among patients with RA before and during the pandemic. Outpatients with RA were enrolled from May 1, 2019, to August 31, 2020; 108 patients completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Before the pandemic, nearly 9% of patients reported definite anxiety, which increased to 12% in 2020. Eight percent of patients reported doubtful anxiety before the pandemic, increasing to 15% in 2020. During the study period, patients reporting definite depression remained at 10%, while more patients reported doubtful depression in 2020. Anxiety during the pandemic correlated with the Health Assessment Questionnaire, biologic drug use, and the previous anxiety point (ß [95% confidence interval], 0.21 [0.04 to 0.38], 0.20 [0.03 to 0.40], and 0.88 [0.53 to 1.23], respectively). There was a correlation noted for the depression point in 2020 with the previous depression point (ß = 0.51; 95% confidence interval, 0.21 to 0.81).
