For example, the Dubuque (Iowa) Telegraph Herald reported the results and quoted a local county health department official who commented on fears that increasingly common arthritis could strain the healthcare system. The Los Angeles Times quoted Dr. Klippel as saying, “with some 67 million Americans projected to have arthritis by 2030, now is the time to escalate efforts to prevent, treat, and cure the most common cause of disability in the United States.” Time magazine quoted the Johns Hopkins Arthritis Center as saying that 10 pounds of excess weight adds about 30 to 60 pounds of extra force on knees with each step.
The CDC is currently analyzing the national survey for a planned February 2011 report that looks at Hispanic ethnicity and subgroups such as Mexican-Americans and Cuban-Americans. “We are finding that although people usually lump Hispanics together as one group, arthritis prevalence varies by subgroup,” Dr. Hootman said.
The CDC plans to update these arthritis prevalence estimates in four to five years.
Meanwhile, the AF and ACR are being joined by advocates in aging, physical therapy, minority health, sports and orthopedic medicine, and others in an Osteoarthritis Coalition that will hold its first meeting in February or March in Washington D.C. Dr. White also hopes to get representatives from chronic disease (heart, diabetes, cancer, etc.) organizations to participate in the event.
Sue Pondrom is a medical journalist based in San Diego.
