['There is a consensus on the need for a more thorough assessment of outcome of RA from the perspective of those who experience the disease. Our objective was to assess the health- related quality of life (HR-QOL) of RA patients by the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP), the measurement of subjective experienced distress.', 'One hundred and nineteen consecutive out-patients were cross-sectionally assessed. HR-QOL was evaluated by using the first section of the NHP, a generic quality of life instrument, that assess subjective distress on six dimensions: mobility, pain, energy, sleep, emotional reaction and social isolation. Functional capacity was measured by the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ).', 'The NHP scores for mobility, pain, energy and sleep showed a linear association (p<0.001 for each) with HAQ disability level. In addition to pain, patients with mild disability (HAQ 0-1) may suffer from remarkable fatigue (loss of energy) and problems in sleep. Even at the HAQ level 0, there was some perceived distress in almost all of the NHP dimensions.'] Does nottingham health profile questionnaire incorporate important aspects of the patient perspective into outcome assessment in rheumatoid arthritis?