Suit yourself and experience rheumatoid arthritis
Mr. Gabriele Brieden, an RA patient of more than 40 years, together with her husband Matthias Orschel-Brieden, developed the RA Experience Suit® to simulate the stiffness, loss of joint function and fine motor skills and other disabling effects associated with RA.
Brieden said the idea for the RA Experience Suit® came about when she and her husband realised while health professionals, social workers and medical scheme administrators are knowledgeable about the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, most do not understand the diverse and complex everyday problems of RA patients.
“Do they know anything about the problems involved in washing, dressing yourself or getting breakfast in the morning?” she asked. “Almost certainly not.”
“Rheumatoid arthritis marks our perception of the world,” she explained. “Life for RA patients is a constant battle that we are forced to fight on two fronts. First, we are fighting to survive a disease that may deform and disable us and for which there is no cure. Second, we are fighting a system that has all the data on RA, but no appreciation of the physical, economic and psychosocial difficulties that dominate our daily lives.”
RA is an autoimmune disorder in which the body's defence system inflames and attacks different joints and organs in the body, often resulting in destruction of the joint, pain, deformity and limits the normal range of motion of affected joints.
Brieden says, “The disease strikes people of all ages, including children and young adults, with RA occurring two to three times more often in women than in men.”
Annari Palmer from the Immunology Team at Abbott, explains how irreversible damage can occur within months of the onset of RA, leading to long-term consequences such as chronic pain, increasing morbidity, disability, the inability to work, premature death and substantial health care costs.
Brieden describes the suit as an innovative and effective tool for educating people who influence the lives of rheumatoid arthritis sufferers and many other forms of arthritis, through this RA suit, decision makers who might not be au-fait with the truly restrictive lives many RA patients lead and the daily challenges they have to overcome, can be reached.”
Palmer explains the RA Experience Suit® helps sensitise people while giving them an appreciation of the obstacles faced by RA patients as they struggle through each day.
“The best way to describe the suit is similar to a wetsuit, comprising overalls, gloves, a collar and boots with Velcro bindings and laces that allow them to be fitted to the wearer's body size. Each joint can be restricted to varying degrees, while the gloves serve to restrict the movement and function of the wrists and of each individual finger,” says Brieden.
Brieden, who has traveled the world with her RA Experience Suit®, hopes the right people see, feel and experience what it means to have RA and relook the funding options with regards to the treatment of this disease.
Editorial contact
Carmen Mc Dowall
011 646 9992 / 084 952 6435
