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Descriptive Epidemiology of Osteoarthritis in British Columbia, Canada
JACEK A. KOPEC, M. MUSHFIQUR RAHMAN, JEAN-MARIE BERTHELOT, CHRISTEL LE PETIT, JAAFAR AGHAJANIAN, ERIC C. SAYRE, JOLANDA CIBERE, ASLAM H. ANIS, and ELIZABETH M. BADLEY ABSTRACT. Objective. Osteoarthritis (OA) is a highly prevalent and often disabling disease. Data on the incidence of OA in the general population are limited. Our objectives were (1) to estimate OA prevalence and incidence rates by age and sex in a geographically defined population of 4 million people [British Columbia (BC), Canada] using an administrative database; and (2) to determine the effects of different administrative definitions of OA and observation (run-in) time on such estimates. Methods. We used data on all visits to health professionals and hospital admissions covered by the Medical Services Plan (MSP) of BC for the fiscal years 1991-92 through 2000-01. OA was defined based on International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, diagnostic codes required for administrative purposes. Results. The overall prevalence of OA in 2001 was 10.8%: 8.9% in men and 12.6% in women. Prevalence was higher in women in all age groups. By age 70–74 years, about one-third of men and 40% of women had OA. Incidence rates in 2000-01 were 11.7 per 1000 person-years in the total population, 10.0 in men and 13.4 in women. Rates increased linearly with age between 50 and 80 years. Both prevalence and incidence depended strongly on the definition of OA and the run-in period. Conclusion. Prevalence of physician-diagnosed OA in BC was slightly lower than self-reported prevalence of arthritis in population surveys. Routinely collected administrative data could be a valuable source of information for OA surveillance, but more research is needed on the validity of OA diagnosis in administrative databases. (First Release Dec 15 2006; J Rheumatol 2007;34:386–93) Key Indexing Terms:
OSTEOARTHRITIS From the Department of Health Care and Epidemiology, University of British Columbia, and the Arthritis Research Centre of Canada, Vancouver, BC, Canada. Supported by a grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. J.A. Kopec is a Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research Senior Scholar. J.A. Kopec, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Health Care and Epidemiology, University of British Columbia, Research Scientist, Arthritis Research Centre of Canada; M.M. Rahman, MSc, Arthritis Research Centre of Canada, Vancouver, BC; J-M. Berthelot, MSc, Canadian Institute of Health Information; C. Le Petit, BSc, Statistics Canada, Ottawa, Ontario; J. Aghajanian, MSc; E.C. Sayre, MSc, PhD candidate, Arthritis Research Centre of Canada; J. Cibere, MD, PhD, Department of Medicine; A.H. Anis, PhD, Department of Health Care and Epidemiology, University of British Columbia; E.M. Badley, PhD, Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Address reprint requests to Dr. J.A. Kopec, Arthritis Research Centre of Canada, 895 West 10th Avenue, Vancouver, BC V5Z 1L7. E-mail: jkopec@arthritisresearch.ca Accepted for publication October 23, 2006.
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