Introduction Epidemiological studies of rheumatic diseases have been conducted during the past 20 years in China. The aim of this study was to clarify prevalence rates of common rheumatic diseases in China.
To determine the incidence of musculoskeletal pain, disabilities, and help seeking behaviour, a questionnaire was administered to a rural population of 2184 men and 2499 women and an urban population of 481 men and 590 women aged over 15 years by house to house interviews with completion rates of 95-2% (rural) and 97-1% (urban). The incidences of pain in the joints, back, or neck were 23-6% (rural) and 31-3% (urban). The incidence of disability due to an inability to walk, lift, carry, and dress was 2-8% (rural) and 0-9% (urban). Patients and methodsThe total populations of 2499 women and 2184 men from two villages and the total populations of 590 women and 481 men from two city neighbourhoods, which were considered to be similar to the rural and urban population of Java, respectively, in demographic characteristics such as life expectancy, age structure, sex distribution, race, income, culture, religion, occupations, and social class,3 4 were selected for a house to house interview survey designed to determine musculoskeletal pain, disability, and help seeking behaviour with the phase 2 questionnaire. The rural population consisted of 75% farmhands and farmers, 18% labourers, and 7% employed by motels, hotels, and village offices. They lived in well defined hamlets surrounded by rice fields and market gardens, mostly in thatched houses. The average life expectancy was 45 years for men and 50 for women, despite a heavier workload (Bandungan community health centre data, 1982) for the women.The urban target areas were situated near the centre of a city with more than 900 000 inhabitants with an average life span of 50 and 55 years for men and women, respectively. Its social strata was predominantly classes 5 (unskilled occupations) and 4 (partly skilled occupations) with some class 3 (skilled occupations) and very few classes 2 (intermediate occupations) and 1 (professional occupations). All the rural and urban target populations were Javanese (Malayo-Polynesians) except a negligible number (less than 0-5%) of Chinese (Mongoloids) who were included in the urban subjects.3 4The rural and urban populations were not socially stratified but were considered to represent the social strata of Javanese rural and urban populations.The phase 1 questionnaire (omitted in this survey) records the occurrence of musculoskeletal pain in various body sites and disabilities as determined by primary health care workers2
As part of the WHO/International League Against Rheumatism (ILAR) sponsored community organized programme for the control of rheumatic disease (COPCORD), an arthritis community education programme (ACE) was undertaken utilizing the traditional form of entertainment in a rural area in Central Java-the wayang. The point prevalence rate of musculoskeletal complaints was estimated in 4683 men & women aged 15 years and over by house-to-house interviews. From 1105 respondents recording recent musculoskeletal pain, 844 were randomly selected and half the latter attended a puppet shadow play (wayang) incorporating the ACE. The other half, matched for age, sex and educational level who did not see the play, served as controls. A questionnaire containing biphasic choices of correct or incorrect ways of performing activities of daily living (ADL) to minimize musculoskeletal problems was administered to the whole group before, 1 month and 6 months after the wayang. Increased knowledge of correct ways of performing ADL (correct ADL) in the intervention group compared with the control group at 1 and 6 months after wayang was significant (P less than 0.05). Comprehension of correct ADL following the wayang could be demonstrated even in subjects who were illiterate and those who had attended primary school only. Retention of knowledge at the 6 month assessment declined more markedly in the illiterate group. ACE by wayang was shown to be feasible and effective in transferring knowledge on ADL to people with musculoskeletal problems in the sample population in Java. This effect could be shown even in the poorly educated section of the community.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Aim: To estimate the incidence of musculoskeletal pain and rheumatic disorders in a Bangladeshi rural community. Methods: This study was conducted in six villages near Dhaka from January 2001 to June 2002. Door‐to‐door case finding by interviewers was followed by interviewing and examination of positive respondents by trained doctors. The respondents with inflammatory arthropathies were reviewed 5 years later, in December 2006. Results: Four hundred and forty‐one (M = 163, F = 278) out of 2685 adults (M = 1324, F = 1361) developed new musculoskeletal pain yielding an incidence rates of 10.9/100 person‐years (PY) (M = 8.2, F = 13.6). The incidence was highest in the 35–44‐year age group in both genders. It was highest in housewives, followed by weavers and cultivators. The spine (7.5/100 PY) was the most common affected part followed by knees (6.5), shoulder (6.2) and neck (6.2). The most common cause of new musculoskeletal pain was non‐specific low back pain, followed by fibromyalgia and knee osteoarthritis. Forty‐one subjects (M = 17, F = 24) developed inflammatory joint or spinal pain (1000/100,000 PY). The incidence of rheumatoid arthritis, combined spondyloarthropothies, ankylosing spondylitis, reactive arthropathy and psoriatic arthritis were 120 (M = 101, F = 147), 150 (M = 252, F = 49), 75 (M = 151, F = 0), 50 (M = 101, F = 0) and 25 (M = 0, F = 49) per 100,000 PY, respectively. Thirty‐one cases had undiagnosed arthropathies (770/100,000 PY). Seven were unavailable in December, 2006 and one died. The remaining 23 were symptom‐free. Conclusions: The incidence of musculoskeletal pain and rheumatic disorders is considerable in this Bangladeshi rural community. Common incident disorders are non‐specific low back pain, fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis of knees. Inflammatory arthropathies are not common. The majority of undiagnosed arthopathies undergo spontaneous lasting remission.
The questionnaires may be used to identify risk factors of knee OA in Asia-Pacific communities after validation and further adaptation. From these data strategies for primary and secondary prevention of knee OA can be developed.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.