CDC says more employees will be affected by arthritis
CDC says more employees will be affected by arthritis
Data indicates one in four will have symptoms of hip arthritis
Arthritis already takes a huge toll on health and productivity in the United States, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has new data showing that one in four Americans will develop symptomatic hip arthritis by age 85.
Then number of people in the United States with arthritis or chronic joint symptoms has been creeping up, from 35 million in 1985, to 43 million in 1998, and last year (2006) to 46 million.
Researchers took a closer look at this condition because it can be even more disabling than the more frequently occurring knee arthritis, says Louise Murphy, PhD, a CDC epidemiologist who presented the new data recently at the American College of Rheumatology/Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals' Scientific Meeting. Besides being physically disabling, hip arthritis costs $8 billion every year in hip replacements, which number 226,000 a year, giving both patients and their health plans reason to take note, she points out.
The risk estimates were derived from data collected for the Johnston County (NC) Osteoarthritis Project, a long-term effort by the CDC and the Thurston Arthritis Research Center at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Of the more than 3,000 people followed, women were found to be at higher risk of symptomatic hip arthritis than men, 28% compared with 18%, and risks for blacks and whites were similar. The greatest difference emerged when body mass index was calculated. Those of normal weight had a 20% risk compared with those who were overweight (25% risk) or obese (39% risk).
"Our results show another major public health problem associated with the aging population, one that may be aggravated by overweight and obesity," says Murphy. "However, weight management and physical activity are proven strategies in reducing pain associated with osteoarthritis, and disease self-management programs such as the Arthritis Self Help Course and the Chronic Disease Self Management Program may help people manage their arthritis."
Smoking adds to risk of arthritis
Smokers risk more painful and progressive osteoarthritis than non-smokers, suggest findings based on 159 men who had osteoarthritis of the knees, and who were monitored for up to 30 months.
According to the data that appeared in December in Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, the affected knees were scanned and the severity of pain scored. The men were monitored and again at 15 and 30 months. Of the total, 12% (19) were active smokers at the start of the study. They smoked an average of 20 cigarettes a day and had done so for around 40 years.
Smokers tended to be younger and thinner, both factors that normally protect against osteoarthritis. But the smokers were more than twice as likely to have a significant degree of cartilage loss compared with the non-smokers, diminishing the cushioning of bones at joints.
Smokers were also significantly more likely to report greater pain severity.
The authors suggest that smoking may alter the pain threshold. It also increases the levels of toxic substances in the blood and starves tissues of oxygen, which may hasten the loss of cartilage.
Suzanne Bade, MPH, OTR, an occupational therapist with the University of Michigan's MWorks program, says arthritis will become a more and more important issue as America's workforce ages. ("Ergonomics, job fit can affect aging workers," OHM September, 2005.)
To prevent aggravation of arthritis, she advises, equipment should be padded so that it doesn't put pressure on sore joints. Changing the size of equipment to make it easier to handle or access can also lessen the impact arthritis has on a worker's performance.
Source
1. Amin S, et al. Cigarette smoking and the risk for cartilage loss and knee pain in men with knee osteoarthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 2006. [Epub ahead of print].
Arthritis already takes a huge toll on health and productivity in the United States, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has new data showing that one in four Americans will develop symptomatic hip arthritis by age 85.Subscribe Now for Access
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