The foot is one of the anatomical structures of the body most affected in rheumatoid arthritis
(RA), associated with the disability of patients, even more during COVID-19. The aim of this study was to
analyse whether the period of physical inactivity during COVID-19 is an influential factor on health-related
quality of life and foot pain in patients with RA.
Methods: 162 patients with foot pain and RA, recruited from the Hospital Virgen de las Nieves, Granada
(Spain) were included. Data was collected during two different periods: January - December 2018 in person
and June - September 2021 by phone. Patients were asked to complete the Spanish adapted version of the
12-Item Short Form Survey (SF-12) and the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS).
Results: The results from the SF-12 questionnaires were divided between its two subscales (i.e., mental, and
physical component). The physical component shows an improvement between 2018 and 2021, from 32.05in 2018–35.18 in 2021 (p < 0.05). The opposite happened with the mental component, showing a dete-
rioration, from 39.69 in 2018–34.48 in 2021 (p < 0.05). Regarding pain, VAS shows higher levels of pain
with statistically significant differences, both in general pain (from 6 in 2018–7 in 2012) and in foot pain
(from 5 to 7), (p < 0.05).
Conclusion: Mental quality of life and pain, both general and foot pain, are influenced by the period of
physical inactivity during COVID-19.
