RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Clinical judgment in rheumatoid arthritis. I. Rheumatologists' opinions and the development of 'paper patients'.
JF Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases
JO Ann Rheum Dis
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and European League Against Rheumatism
SP 644
OP 647
DO 10.1136/ard.42.6.644
VO 42
IS 6
A1 J R Kirwan
A1 D M Chaput de Saintonge
A1 C R Joyce
A1 H L Currey
YR 1983
UL http://ard.bmj.com/content/42/6/644.abstract
AB Opinions about the importance of various measures of disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis gathered from a survey of 20% of British rheumatologists showed a wide diversity for all clinical variables. 'Paper patients' have been developed as a method of investigating actual clinical decisions rather than expressed opinions. Assessments based on 'paper patients' correlate highly (r = +0.901) with those made on the equivalent real patients when seen in person.