Bone and joint disease is pandemic of the future

Bone and joint disease is an important cause of chronic pain in the general community and is a significant cause of chronic disability in older Australians, according to two studies recently published in the Medical Journal of Australia.

A study by Dr Fiona Blyth, Dr Lyn March and Dr Michael Cousins conducted in the northern Sydney area showed that more than 20 percent of the community suffered from chronic pain and the most common cause was a musculoskeletal (bone and joint) condition.

Another study indicated 70 percent more elderly people would suffer from profound physical disability over the next 30 years, with a bone and joint problem being the most common cause.

The research group, led by Professor Maria Crotty from the Department of Rehabilitation and Aged Care at Flinders University, provided projections of the prevalence of disability and associated health conditions for older Australians for the period 2006–2031.

Convenor of the Bone and Joint Decade Australian National Action Network, Professor Peter Brooks, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences at The University of Queensland, said the studies emphasised the importance of bone and joint diseases in the ageing population and justified the designation of musculoskeletal disease and arthritis as Australia’s seventh National Health Priority last year by the Federal Government.

“The data emphasises the importance of musculoskeletal disease and the designation of the decade 2000–2010 as the Decade of Bone and Joint Disease – an international movement sanctioned by the World Health Organisation, the United Nations and more than 60 countries around the world including Australia as a means of focusing attention on the increasingly common and chronic disease affecting the musculoskeletal system,” Professor Brooks said.

Media: For further information, contact Dr Blyth (email fblyth@doh.health.nsw.gov.au), Dr March (email lmarc@doh.health.nsw.gov.au), Professor Crotty (email maria.crotty@rgh.sa.gov.au) or telephone 08 8275 1640.