Background/Purpose: Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis, a condition associated with substantial disability. Providers are often uncomfortable managing arthritis, and patients with OA often do not seek care within the healthcare system. The lack of engagement with medical care for OA has yet to be quantified.

Methods: Using data from the Osteoarthritis Initiative (OAI), a cohort recruited originally to facilitate the identification of biomarkers for knee OA, we evaluated engagement of arthritis care at the baseline visit of the study. Participants were recruited into the study if they were healthy controls, were at risk for symptomatic radiographic knee OA (SOA), or already had SOA. At the baseline visit, participants had PA knee radiographs scored for Kellgren and Lawrence (KL) grade (0-4) and were asked whether they had frequent knee pain in each knee. Study staff measured each participant’s weight and height and asked about their gender, race, and age. They were also asked, “Are you currently seeing a doctor or other health care professional for arthritis?” that allowed for a dichotomous response of yes or no. We performed frequency evaluations for this question for the whole cohort, then cross-tabulated based on maximal KL grade (those with a prosthetic were grouped separately). We also performed a cross-tabulation with the number of knees with frequent knee pain and chi-squared test to evaluate significant differences between groups.

Results: Of the 4796 participants within the OAI cohort, the mean age was 61.5 (9.2) years, the mean BMI was 28.6 (4.8) kg/m2, and 58% were female. 57% had at least one knee with radiographic OA (KL>2). 58 had an arthroplasty in one knee. In this cohort, only 12% answered that they currently see a doctor or other health care professional for arthritis. Females, those with a prior diagnosis of OA, greater BMI, greater KL grade, more knee pain, and SOA were more likely to seek care for their arthritis. Those with insurance and lower income were more likely to seek care for OA.

Conclusion: In a cohort recruited to study knee OA, 56% of whom had radiographic evidence of knee OA in at least one knee, only 12% were currently seeking care for their arthritis. Those with greater disease severity, symptoms, and SOA were more likely to seek care, but even among those groups, participation was low. Interestingly, those with a lower income were more likely to seek care for knee OA. These findings confirm a substantial gap in the provision of care for knee OA using traditional healthcare systems and provide important impetus for identifying novel strategies for management of OA.

Table 1. Percentage of Participants in Difference

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ACR Meeting Abstracts - https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/people-with-knee-osteoarthritis-infrequently-seek-medical-care-for-arthritis-even-those-with-severe-disease/