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Canadians
with a lower income and lower level of education have a higher
incidence of osteoarthritis but have a more limited access
to joint replacement surgery, according to research presented
at Canada's Osteoarthritis Consensus Conference.
A major
reason for the limited access is that people generally view
osteoarthritis as a normal part of aging rather than a disease,
and many never even discuss joint replacement with their physician.
"It's
alarming to think that so many people are suffering silently,"
said Dr. Gillian Hawker, rheumatologist at Sunnybrook and
Women's College Health Sciences Center in Toronto and lead
investigator of the study. "Our research is now looking
at whether patients and primary care physicians are dismissing
osteoarthritis as a disease altogether or whether there is
a lack of understanding about the effective treatments, both
drug and non-drug, that are available to reduce pain and disability
from osteoarthritis."
Leading
arthritis advocacy groups, including the Arthritis Society,
the Canadian Arthritis Network, the Canadian Institutes of
Health Research and the Institute of Musculoskeletal Health
and Arthritis are coming together in the Consensus Conference,
which will help to give patients a voice in setting the national
agenda for osteoarthritis research in Canada.
Source:
Medical Week staff,
week of May 5, 2002
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