Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the ten most disabling diseases in developed countries and one of the leading causes of pain and disability over the world. Early diagnosis increases the likelihood of preventing disease progression.
To estimate the prevalence of self-reported osteoarthritis and quality of life in Portuguese adults with 45 or more years old.
Observational, cross-sectional study, implemented in households by face-to-face interview.
1,039 subjects with mean age of 62 years and 54.2% female were included. The prevalence of self-reported osteoarthritis was 9.9%. Knees and hands were the most frequent site of disease. The prevalence of OA was higher in women and in participants without professional activity. Presence of OA was higher in participants with comorbidities. Most subjects have done some treatment at some point in time for this disease: 94.5% had drug therapy, 49.5% physiotherapy, and 19.8% physical activity. Pain was associated with height, with some disease locations specifically neck, lower spine and shoulders, SF12 scores of quality of life, and measurements of impact in daily living, severity of disease and disability. The impact of OA in daily living was greater in subjects that had been on sick leave or stopped working due to OA, had worse physical and mental health, and with more severe of disease.
This study confirmed that osteoarthritis is a very relevant disease with a high potential impact on quality of life, function and work ability and because of its prevalence with a very high growing social impact.