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Purpose: The objective of this systematic literature review was to: (1) estimate the prevalence of (symptoms of) rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs) and (2) explore how (symptoms of) RMDs are identified and documented in studies among nursing home residents., Methods: Prevalence data of (symptoms of) RMDs in permanently admitted nursing home residents ≥ 60 years were included. Data extraction, data synthesis and risk of bias assessment were performed by two reviewers independently. Included studies were categorized based on case ascertainment and case definition comprising: (location of) musculoskeletal pain, general terms for RMDs or a specific type of RMD. Results were summarized descriptively., Results: Out of 6900 records, 53 studies were included. Case ascertainment comprised databases (n = 5), physical examination (n = 1), self-report questionnaires (n = 14), review of medical charts (n = 23) and self-report questionnaires combined with review of medical charts (n = 10). Prevalence ranged between 0.9 and 77.0% for (localized) musculoskeletal pain (n = 19) and between 0.6 and 67.5% for RMDs in general (n = 39). Prevalence rates of specific type of RMDs ranged between 0.7 and 47.5% for gout, between 3.3 and 11.0% for rheumatoid arthritis and between 2.8 and 75.4% for osteo-arthritis (n = 14). Heterogeneity with regard to documentation of (symptoms of) RMDs in medical data of nursing home residents was high., Conclusion: The overall prevalence of (symptoms of) RMDs varied to a great extent. This was mainly due to large heterogeneity in documentation of (symptoms of) RMDs. Establishing agreement on a useful and practical classification may ultimately increase identification of RMDs in the nursing home setting., Competing Interests: Declarations. Conflict of interest: SA: None. IK: None. AB: consultancy fees from UCB, Lilly, Novartis, Sandoz and Galapagos. Research grants from Abbvie and Celgene. JS: None. MO: consultancy fees Novartis, Pfizer. Research grant from Pfizer. Ethical approval and Informed consent: This study is a systematic literature review of existing publications. We have not collected any new data or examined patients ourselves. Therefore, no ethical approval or informed consent has been obtained., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, systemic inflammatory disease of unknown aetiology which principally affects the small joints of the hands and feet. The incidence of RA increases with age and peaks within the age range of 70 to 79 years. In the ageing population, therefore, it is expected that the number of patients with RA will grow proportionally and more patients will have comorbidities but also so-called geriatric syndromes (GS). GS are clinical and multifactorial conditions in older persons that are associated with poor health outcomes, do not fit into disease categories (comorbidities) and require a multidimensional treatment approach. Patients suffering from RA may be at increased risk for GS. Therefore, it is important that rheumatologists are knowledgeable about the constructs represented by GS, understand the main risk factors, and gain insight in how to recognise these syndromes. Limited awareness of the (risk for) GS in patients with RA among rheumatologists may lead to ineffective management of RA. Our objective was to provide a comprehensive overview about the prevalence, aetiologic factors and health consequences of the most important GS in patients with RA.