The Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales (AIMS) have been used to measure health status in patients with rheumatic diseases in North America. In this study, a Dutch version of this self-assessment questionnaire named the DUTCH-AIMS was evaluated in 73 Dutch patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Significant correlations between scores from the DUTCH-AIMS on the one hand and ARA functional class, haemoglobin, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, self-assessments of functional impairment and perceived overall health on the other hand indicate that the scales are valid and provide good estimations of various components of the health status of the Dutch arthritic patient.