At OMERACT 2010, the draft ACR-EULAR criteria for remission in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) were criticized because participants felt insufficient patient-important information may be included, despite the PtGA. A working group was formed to address this problem.

Qualitative work and surveys published by this group established that pain, fatigue, and independence are the most important domains that patients consider when deciding whether they are in remission (‘disease activity as good as gone’).

A longitudinal study by the working group determined that numerical rating scales to measure pain and fatigue are optimally valid and feasible, BUT no ideal instrument for independence exists currently.

The next phase includes a scoping review of how independence in RA is represented in the literature and qualitative work to understand the patient perspective of independence in the context of remission in RA, what factors influence this and subsequently what instrument should be developed to measure independence.