Disease Severity Is Directly Related To National Health Expenditure For Rheumatoid Arthritis

Main Category: Arthritis / Rheumatology
Article Date: 19 Jun 2007 - 3:00 PDT

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In the first international 'map of rheumatoid arthritis' (RA), spanning Europe and beyond, significant national differences in RA severity can be directly traced to national economics, most notably health expenditure, as exposed by data from the QUEST-RA Study presented at EULAR 2007, the Annual Congress of the European League Against Rheumatism, Barcelona, Spain.

Lead author of the study, Dr Tuulikki Sokka of the Jyvaskyla Central Hospital, Finland, comments, "Most medical literature on RA is based on randomised clinical trials but many RA patients do not meet trial inclusion criteria and not all European countries are sufficiently involved in such trials. QUEST-RA was put together as a collaborative international cross-sectional study of RA. Consequently, it sheds light on the true international variations and related economic factors that affect the progression of the disease."

QUEST-RA is the first multi-national database in RA in this scale. The study reviewed data from 100 consecutive RA patients in three or more centres in each of the 21 participating countries, including clinical status records and patient self-report outcomes. Between January 2005 to June 2007 QUEST-RA includes patients from Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, UK, Argentina, Canada, and USA.

Measurements of patients' disease states were taken using the Disease Activity Scale 28, (DAS28) which assesses the activity of disease across the 28 joints most commonly affected by RA.

Each participating country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and health expenditure per capita were logged and analysis revealed a negative correlation between disease severity and national GDP / health expenditure - showing disease severity to be higher in poorer countries with less health spending.

Professor Tore K Kvien, EULAR President, based at Diakonhjemmet Hospital, Oslo, Norway, says, "Now that we have such a clear picture of the disparity of disease severity relative to health spending across Europe, we must work to level off such inequalities. EULAR is a partnership organisation of people with arthritis and rheumatism in Europe and clinicians/researchers/health professional and will continue to work for equal access to effective treatments across Europe."

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Abstract numbers: THU0477 & FRI0188

About EULAR

* The European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) is the organization which represents the patient, health professional and scientific societies of rheumatology of all the European nations.

* The aims of EULAR are to reduce the burden of rheumatic diseases on the individual and society and to improve the treatment, prevention and rehabilitation of musculoskeletal diseases. To this end, EULAR fosters excellence in education and research in the field of rheumatology. It promotes the translation of research advances into daily care and fights for the recognition of the needs of people with musculoskeletal diseases by the governing bodies in Europe.

* Diseases of bones and joints, such as rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis cause disability in 4 - 5 % of the adult population and are predicted to rise as people live longer.

* As new treatments emerge and cellular mechanisms are discovered, the 8th Annual European Congress of Rheumatology in Barcelona (EULAR 2007) brings together more than 10,000 experts - scientists, clinicians, healthcare workers, pharmaceutical companies and patients - to share their knowledge in a global endeavour to challenge the pain and disability caused by musculo-skeletal disorders.

* To find out more information about the activities of EULAR, visit: http://www.eular.org/

Contact: Rory Berrie/Camilla Dormer
European League Against Rheumatism

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