Table 2.

Descriptive statistics for side effects, medications, and beliefs about medicines at baseline and 6-month follow-up

Variables	Patient numbers
	Baseline (n = 100)	Follow-up (n = 87)
Side Effects Scale (M, SD, Cronbach’s alpha)	4.31 ± 2.31, α=.81	2.24 ± 1.81, α=.84
Bothered by side effects from arthritis medication (1-5), (M, SD)	2.72 ± 1.33	1.68 ± 0.98
Self-changed prescribed medication due to side effects	51 (51 %)	17 (19.5 %)
Taken non-prescribed medication to relieve side effects	38 (38 %)	15 (17.2 %)
Reported any side effects to your doctor	70 (70 %)	21 (27.7 %)
Incidence of side effects §	77 (77%)	45 (51.7%)
Type of side effects in free format #
Abdominal discomfort (stomach pain, cramps, etc.)	27 (27 %)	15 (17.2 %)
Skin reactions (rash, ulcer, sores, allergies)	18 (18 %)	7 (8.0 %)
Nausea	15 (15 %)	8 (9.2 %)
Weight loss/gain	12 (12 %)	3 (3.4 %)
Fatigue	10 (10 %)	5 (5.7 %)
Diarrhea, vomiting	7 (7 %)	1 (1.1 %)
Headache	5 (5 %)	5 (5.7 %)
Medication regimen
Symptomatic drugs	73 (73 %)	60 (68.9 %)
Steroids	30 (30 %)	25 (28.7 %)
DMARDs	58 (58 %)	45 (51.7 %)
Biologic response modifiers	48 (48 %)	44 (50.6 %)
New drug prescription within 6-months follow-up	-	17 (19.5 %)
BMQ subscales (M, SD, Cronbach’s alpha)
General Harm (1-20)	8.86 ± 2.83, α=.68	8.57 ± 2.47, α=.61
General Overuse (1-20)	11.56 ± 3.09, α=.74	11.21 ± 2.78, α=.69
Specific Necessity (1-25)	19.63 ± 3.77, α=.82	19.62 ± 3.72, α=.81
Specific Concern (1-30)	17.01 ± 4.29, α=.73	16.63 ± 3.73, α=.71

Note. M = Mean; SD = standard deviation

^§Incidence was defined as the proportion of patients who were at least mildly bothered by side effects or agreed to any of the other three side effect questions

^#Reported are side effects with a base rate > 5%; DMARDs = Disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs; BMQ = Beliefs about Medicines Questionnaire.