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©The Author(s) 2026. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Psychiatry. Jan 19, 2026; 16(1): 111812
Published online Jan 19, 2026. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v16.i1.111812
Published online Jan 19, 2026. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v16.i1.111812
Dynamic psychological vulnerability and adaptation in rheumatoid arthritis: Trajectories, predictors, and interventions
Xue-Meng Chen, Xian Cheng, Wei Wu, Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Rheumatism Immunology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
Co-first authors: Xue-Meng Chen and Xian Cheng.
Author contributions: Chen XM and Cheng X contributed equally to study conception, systematic literature search, data extraction, and manuscript drafting as co-first authors; Wu W supervised the study design, provided critical revisions of the manuscript, and approved the final version for submission. All authors approved the final version to publish.
Supported by Chongqing Health Commission and Chongqing Science and Technology Bureau, No. 2023MSXM182.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Wei Wu, MD, Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Rheumatism Immunology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, No. 30 Gaotanyanzheng Street, Shapingba District, Chongqing 400038, China. wuwei@tmmu.edu.cn
Received: August 6, 2025
Revised: September 14, 2025
Accepted: October 30, 2025
Published online: January 19, 2026
Processing time: 146 Days and 19 Hours
Revised: September 14, 2025
Accepted: October 30, 2025
Published online: January 19, 2026
Processing time: 146 Days and 19 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: This review identifies three distinct psychological vulnerability trajectories in rheumatoid arthritis patients, with early intervention within 3-6 months post-diagnosis reducing depression incidence by 42% and maintaining benefits for 24-36 months. Different psychological interventions demonstrate complementary therapeutic advantages: Cognitive behavioral therapy excels for depression treatment, mindfulness-based approaches optimize pain acceptance, and peer support facilitates meaning reconstruction.