The Socio-economic Impacts on Household Income, Employment Status, Need for Public Assistance, and Marriage Opportunities in Patients with Spondyloarthritis: A Comparison with the Hong Kong Population

Objectives: Our goal is to assess the impacts of spondyloarthritis (SpA) on household income, employment status, need for public assistance, and marriage opportunities by comparing the disease group with the Hong Kong population. We also aim to identify the potential predictors for lowered monthly household income in SpA patients. Methods: One hundred and sixty patients were involved in the study. Age and sex categorized household income, employment status, need for public assistance, and marriage opportunities were compared between SpA patients and the Hong Kong population. Baseline characteristics were compared between SpA patients with a monthly household income above or below the median Hong Kong Island population monthly household income. Univariate regression analyses were performed using a natural log (ln) of monthly household income as the dependent variable and baseline characteristics with a significant difference (p<0.1) as independent variables. A multivariate regression model was built up using ln (monthly household income as the dependent variable) and factors with a significant difference (p<0.1) in univariate analyses as independent variables. Results: SpA patients in the older group were found to have lowered household income, decreased marriage opportunities, a greater percentage of unemployment, and a need for public assistance. Monthly household income is positively associated with tertiary education (B=0.19; p=0.03) and negatively associated with mSASSS (B=-0.26; p=0.02), living alone (B=-0.18; p=0.03), and the presence of medical problems (B=-0.19; p=0.03). Conclusion: Having SpA has a significant impact on various socio-economic factors. The impacts appeared to increase in the older age group. Disease severity is one of the major factors that predict a lowered household income.