Campaigner Frances who lives with arthritis tells us why she is going to party conferences
I was 23 when I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis . I had trained to be a teacher but it became clear that it would no longer be possible for me to keep up with a class and spend long hours standing. It wasn’t the life I expected to live.You have to make a new life, and let go of what you thought was going to happen. Arthritis can affect every aspect of your existence, from your career to your relationships and social life. As well as the big changes, there are little things too, for example I can find it a struggle to take the cap off a bottle of water.I am joining Arthritis Research UK at party conferences to...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - September 3, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
New app helps adults to get more active
As a charity, we know how important remaining active is for the 10 million people living with arthritis. Which is why we have been working in partnership with Public Health England to encourage physical activity.As a part of this collaborative work, we are pleased to support the launch of Public Health England’s‘Active 10’ app as part of its‘One You’ health and wellbeing platform.The app encourages people to walk just ten minutes a day, an activity which is beneficial for people living with musculoskeletal conditions.This ten minutes can make a huge difference to your health, it gets the heart...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - August 23, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
The true impact of arthritis
You'll know all too well the impact arthritis has on your own life. Perhaps you also think about how your arthritis affects your loved ones or your employer, but the impact doesn’t stop there. With 10 million people in the UK living with arthritis, each with friends and family, many with work colleagues and employers and all supported by a team of healthcare professionals, the ripple effect of arthritis touches every person in our society, either directly or indirectly.To support our campaign, we've gathered evidence to reveal the extent of the hidden impact of arthritis on our society, published in a new report...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - August 21, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
The nation ’s joint problem – our CEO explains urgent need for new campaign
Arthritis affects over 10 million people living in the UK. And yet how often is it talked about or represented on our TV screens, in magazines or newspapers? Over the coming weeks that's set to change with the launch of our new high-profile campaign.Our research shows that over three quarters of people with arthritis think that society doesn’t understand what it’s like to live with arthritis and 78% said other people don’t understand the impact because they don’t look seriously affected. We want to change that.Developed with the help of people with arthritis, our campaign advert depicts the impact ...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - August 21, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
New research shines spotlight on mental health and arthritis
Around a third of the 400,000 people in the UK with rheumatoid arthritis also experience mental health issues. Statistics like these clearly show arthritis does not just affect people’s physical health. Without the right treatment and support the pain and fatigue of rheumatoid arthritis can take its toll on our minds, as well as our bodies.We want this to change and for the mental health issues associated with arthritis to be taken seriously, recognised early and treated effectively. We've forged a new partnership with mental health research charityMQ: Transforming Mental Health to support vital research in this...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - August 21, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
Preventing the pain of osteoarthritis – do molecules and proteins hold the answers?
This study also includes several collaborators, including members of the Arthritis Research UK Centre of Excellence for Pain (Professor Victoria Chapman and Dr. Federico Dajas-Bailador) and of the Arthritis Research UK Centre of Excellence for Osteoarthritis Pathogenesis (Professor Tonia Vincent).Nerve protein may protect against the onset and pain of arthritisMeanwhile, another three-year study will explore if a protein found on nerves in and around our joints could be used to reduce pain and inflammation associated with osteoarthritis.Susan Brain, Professor of Pharmacology at King’s College London, tells us more ab...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - August 21, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
Can we really work for longer? Study asks how feasible a higher retirement age is for people with arthritis
With retirement ages going up and the value of pensions and savings going down, more and more people with arthritis will need and want to work for longer. Arthritis can be a barrier to working at any age, with thousands losing out in the world of work every year because of their condition. That’s why we're funding health and work research to help people with arthritis find or stay in work, inspire changes in the workplace and influence and inform policy-makers and employers.The Health and Employment After 50 (HEAF) study at the Arthritis Research UK Centre for Musculoskeletal Health and Work has recruited more than 8...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - August 21, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
Anne's story – Let’s be honest about the hidden impact of arthritis
Anne Kearl, 55, was first diagnosed with osteoarthritis in her spine twenty years ago. Chronic back and neck pain affect every aspect of her life, contributing to her giving up work aged 52, but this impact is often hidden and rarely understood by others. This is something Anne believes needs to change."Pain is normal to me. It’s always there. I may paint a smile on my face, but I'll be hurting all over. You get used to it, but it does grind you down. It’s had a big impact on my mental health; pain and depression feed off each other and in my experience, it’s hard to separate them out a lot of the time. I...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - August 21, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
Cost of arthritis
The Times today featured a letter to editor which reports that Arthritis Research UK is calling for arthritis to be recognised for what it is: a public health priority and a significant problem facing the UK. Our call to action has been signed by 16 notable people, including BBC journalist and broadcaster Julian Worricker, actress Sally Hawkins, Caroline Lucas MP, Paralympic athlete Pamela Relph and Professor Luke O’Neill from Trinity College, Dublin. Read the letter in full below:Dear Sir,Arthritis affects over 10 million people and is the number one cause of disability in the UK. Four in five of those who...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - August 21, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
Contraceptive pill 'may lower risk of rheumatoid arthritis in women'
Women who regularly use oral contraceptives may be at a lower risk of developing rheumatoidarthritis. This is according to a new study led by the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and published in the British Medical Journal, which adds to the body of evidence suggesting that hormonal and reproductive factors may explain why women are generally at greater risk of developingrheumatoid arthritis than men. The study findings For this study, data was collated from the Swedish Epidemiological Investigation of Rheumatoid Arthritis on 2,809 women who had been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and 5,312 women without the disease. ...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - August 21, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
The nation's #jointproblem: Arthritis will cause 25.9 million lost working days costing £3.43 billion by 2030
Arthritis Research UK, the UK’s leading arthritis charity, is today launching a major nationwide campaign to reveal the true impact of arthritis across society. The campaign will highlight that, either directly or indirectly, arthritis impacts everyone in the UK. The campaign will also highlight that there are over 10 million people living with arthritis and the condition can cause high levels of daily pain and fatigue.As part of the launch, Arthritis Research UK is releasing The Nation’s Joint Problem report which reveals the current and future impact of two major forms of the condition, osteoarthritis (O...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - August 20, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
New study highlights key quality of life factors for ankylosing spondylitis
A new study has shed light on some of the most prevalent modifiable factors that predict a poor quality of life in people withankylosing spondylitis. Moreover, the University of Aberdeen research indicated that some of these factors - which include pain,fatigue and poor physical function - are currently better monitored than others, suggesting new approaches to treating this painful condition may be needed. The most important predictors for poor quality of life The study analysed data from 959 patients involved in the Scotland Registry for Ankylosing Spondylitis, which collected clinical and patient-reported data on ankylo...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - August 16, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
Rheumatoid arthritis risk 'may be elevated for people in certain jobs'
This study, published in the medical journal Arthritis Research& Care, assessed data from 3,522 Swedish individuals with rheumatoid arthritis and 5,580 control subjects, including information on environmental, genetic and immunological factors between 1996 and 2014. Male workers in the manufacturing sector were shown to have a higher risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis than those working in professional, administrative and technical roles, with electrical and electronics workers and material handling operators experiencing a twofold increased risk, while bricklayers and concrete workers were three times more likely...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - August 10, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
New nurse and allied health professional interns 2017
This year’s nurse and allied health professional (AHP) interns have begun their research placements.Over the course of three years, the internship scheme will support 18 newly qualified AHPs at the start of their professional career and bring them into rheumatology research teams.The governance of the£120,000 programme is being overseen by Professor Catherine Bowen at the University of Southampton, who is joined by colleagues from a network of universities including Leeds, Salford, Oxford and West of England, Bristol.This project is now in its second year, with six interns due to undertake research project...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - August 8, 2017 Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news
