Category Archives: Featured

Our Global Message to Strengthen Patient Voices Is Heard at EULAR

Patient voices are critical to finding a cure for OA and other forms of arthritis. That’s the message Arthritis Foundation Osteoarthritis (OA) Programs Director Angie Botto-van Bemden, PhD, is sharing at the 2019 annual European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR) in Madrid, June 12-15. Continue reading Our Global Message to Strengthen Patient Voices Is Heard at EULAR

Providing a Consistent Message for OA Disease Management

The Arthritis Foundation is partnering globally with other osteoarthritis (OA)-related patient advocacy organizations to develop consistent treatment management messaging for all health care providers (HCPs) who interact with OA patients. Currently, an OA patient may see different types of HCPs, depending on the stage of their disease and their location. It’s important that primary care doctors become familiar with all OA treatment options so they can work with patients to develop the best care plans. Continue reading Providing a Consistent Message for OA Disease Management

osteoarthritis patient survey

Global Survey Will Help Us Understand Patient Perceptions

Globally, osteoarthritis (OA) is the third most rapidly rising condition associated with disability. We know the disease affects people of all ages, and given the current rate of population aging, it is estimated that the number of people who suffer from this disease will double in the next three decades. These are staggering statistics that we are actively trying to change.

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knee oa weight loss

More Weight Loss Is Better for Knee OA

When it comes to easing the symptoms of knee osteoarthritis (OA), the more weight loss, the better, according to researchers at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. In a study published recently online in Arthritis Care & Research, Stephen Messier, PhD, and colleagues report that overweight and obese adults aged 55 and older with knee OA who lost 20 percent or more of their body weight saw far greater improvements in pain, function, quality of life, inflammation and knee joint stress than those who lost less.

In an earlier trial, the same researchers found that a weight loss of 10 percent – the amount the National Institutes of Health recommends for overweight and obese adults – improved mobility and decreased pain by 50 percent over an 18-month period. In their latest findings, they say doubling weight loss can cut pain and improve function by another 25 percent.

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Hand OA Risk Higher for Women, Caucasians, Overweight People

About 40 percent of adults in the United States are likely to develop osteoarthritis (OA) in at least one hand by age 85, and some people are more at risk than others, according to researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Their findings were published recently in the journal Arthritis & Rheumatology.
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Osteoarthritis Treatment Options

Study Confirms That Losing Weight May Save Your Knees

Losing excess weight may help preserve knee cartilage in people who have or are at risk of knee osteoarthritis (OA), according to researchers at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), whose findings were recently published online in the journal Radiology. Knee cartilage is the rubbery, slick cap that covers the ends of the upper (femur) and lower (tibia) leg bones that make up the knee joint.

Their study also found that shedding extra pounds protected the menisci, the crescent-shaped cartilage pads that cushion the knee joint. Lead author Alexandra Gersing, MD, a postdoctoral scholar at UCSF School of Medicine, says this is especially important because a torn or damaged meniscus can speed up the degeneration of the knee joint overall.
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Healthy Fats and OA

A Diet of Bad Fats May Hasten Knee OA Progression

A diet high in fat, especially saturated fat, may speed up the progression of knee osteoarthritis (OA), whereas eating greater amounts unsaturated fat might slow it down, according to researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. Their study, published recently in Arthritis Care & Research, is one of the first to look at the effect of diet on the rate of OA progression. The researchers say they undertook the study because diet plays a role in the development of many chronic diseases, including diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease, and they suspected it might also be involved in osteoarthritis.
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