Activité physique, exercice et polyarthrite rhumatoïde : revue de la littérature

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease affecting 0.5-1% of Caucasians, resulting in the progressive destruction of articular and peri-articular structures. Pain and disability symptoms are typically accompanied by a reduced level of physical activity. Damages caused by inactivity led to the encouragement of active therapeutic modalities and to the restriction of bed rest only to severe inflammatory flares. As a result, exercise programs were introduced these last decades. The clinical tolerance and effectiveness of exercise in preventing physical deconditioning of patients are now established and positive results were reported on quality of life, function and pain. Recently, guidelines on exercise prescription for patients with rheumatoid arthritis were set. However, a large amount of research is still needed to determine the optimal type, planning and environment for exercise and to improve patients' long-term adherence to exercise.