May 29 to June 3 is Arthritis Awareness Week in Australia.
Are you aware of just how many Aussies are living with Arthritis?
According to the National Health Survey: First Results, 2014-15, it affects 3.5 million Australians. 1 in 4 of them are children.
Arthritis isn’t a single or simple disease. It’s an ‘umbrella term’ for more than 100 medical conditions that affect the musculoskeletal system, specifically joints (where 2 or more bones meet). When joints become inflamed it can lead to pain, stiffness, disability and deformity. These symptoms can impact everyday life. Without a doubt musculoskeletal conditions like these are one of the major causes of chronic pain and disability in Australia. Some forms of the disease can even prove fatal.
In case you weren’t aware, it’s on the rise.
In 2014-15, 15.3% of Australians (3.5 million people) had arthritis, with prevalence higher amongst women than men (18.3% compared with 12.3%).
More than half of these – 58.9% – had osteoarthritis (deterioration of cartilage), 11.5% had rheumatoid arthritis, or RA (an autoimmune disease) and 34.8% had an unspecified type of arthritis. (As it’s possible to have more than 1 type of arthritis, the total numbers here add up to more than 100%.)
It’s thought to be closer to 1 in 5 Aussies with arthritis now. The 2014 Community Health Survey (CHS) estimated that 24.6% of Central Coast adults aged 18 years and over had arthritis.
It’s even more prevalent in the youngest Australians.
Conservative estimates have between 1 and 4 in every 1,000 Aussie kids living with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA). That’s as many as 1 child in every school or suburb in Australia, and right across the Coast!
There are thousands of children in Australia with JIA. For many, it’s a lifelong condition.
Over the past 9 years osteoarthritis has also increased – from 6.2% to 8.5% – or half a million more Aussies living with that type of arthritis. This is a particular worry, given the issues surrounding obesity in the country, and how much it is costing our healthcare system. The findings show the incidence of the condition has grown in line with the national trend towards obesity — with 28.4% of Australians falling into the ‘obese’ Body Mass Index (BMI) category, compared to just 25.2% in 2007. The 2014 CHS showed an estimated 59.5% of Central Coast adults aged 18 years and over were overweight or obese.
Arthritis Symptoms include:
- Pain
- Stiffness or reduce movement in a joint
- Swelling or inflammation
- Redness and/or warmth around the joint
- General fatigue, weight loss
- RA or JIA can increase the risk of developing second or subsequent conditions, it’s best to get checked and keep monitoring any change in symptoms – or new ones.
- One-third of people living with arthritis are thought to be clinically depressed or anxious, including the kids.
Diagnosis:
May need a physical exam, blood tests, and imaging. Even a process of elimination to rule out anything (and everything) else. Unfortunately there is no one test to discover the disease, so it may take weeks or even months to get a diagnosis.
Treatment – the old adage of move it or lose it is true!
- Safe Exercise is vital in both managing the condition- and preventing it- as regular exercise can strengthen muscles and joints. Just don’t overdo it: too much or too strenuous activity can cause injury.
- Healthy Eating: with obesity one of the leading causes of osteoarthritis, it’s extremely important to maintain a well-balanced diet to retain a healthy weight. Excess weight can also put extra stress on the joints of people with RA and JIA.
- Talk to your doctor. Medications may be necessary, especially in the autoimmune forms of arthritis. Regular blood tests may also be needed to check the effects.
Coasties living with Arthritis may be eligible for the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), which can be coordinated through the Central Coast Disability Network (CCDN). They’ve been looking after people since 1979, and helping access the NDIS since its introduction to the Central Coast 1st July 2016.
For info and support get in touch with CCDN at 29 Webb Street East Gosford, phone 02 4349 3700. Or click the pic for the website.
And each year Arthritis & Osteoporosis NSW invite Central Coast children living with JIA along with other disabled or disadvantaged kids, to a day out at the movies, thanks to the support of local businesses and community groups.
If you would like to donate or find out more info about Kidsflix, check in here
