Incident osteoarthritis associated with increased allied health services use in 'baby boomer' Australian women.

CONCLUSIONS: A pre-existing higher use of health services is associated with reporting incident OA, compared to those who never report arthritis. After onset of OA, rate of doctor use reduced and allied health use increased, consistent with recommended Australian treatment guidelines.
IMPLICATIONS: This study provides a rare insight into change in healthcare use for people reporting incident OA, against an appropriate comparison group, highlighting the importance of early diagnosis of OA to optimise effective use of health services.
PMID: 27198927 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Source: Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health - May 14, 2016 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Parkinson L, Moorin R, Peeters G, Byles J, Blyth F, Caughey G, Cunich M, Magin P, March L, Pond D Tags: Aust N Z J Public Health Source Type: research