Year: 2007
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Out of a nationally representative sample of 8,028 persons aged 30 years and over, 80% participated in a comprehensive health examination which included a standard clinical examination by a physician.Using standard criteria based on medical history, symptom history and physical status, chronic low-back syndrome was diagnosed in 10.8% of men and 11.0% of women, neck syndrome in 5.7% of men and 7.3% of women, hip osteoarthritis in 5.5% of men and 4.6% of women, knee osteoarthritis in 6.1% of men and 8.3% of women, and rheumatoid factor positive polyarthritis in 0.3% of men and 0.7% of women.In comparison with the Mini-Finland health survey carried out 20 years earlier, the prevalence of low-back and neck syndromes was found to have decreased in both sexes; the prevalence of knee osteoarthritis had decreased in women but not in men.Quantitative ultrasound measurements made at the heel showed that low bone density is common in the Finnish population, whereas the prevalence of self-reported osteoporosis is low and the prevalence of those being monitored by a doctor due to their osteoporosis is even lower.The length of education was inversely associated with the prevalence of common musculoskeletal syndromes.Self-rated disability at work and during leisure time was strongly associated with the presence of musculoskeletal disorders or diseases.A musculoskeletal disease or complaint was the principal reason for the most recent visit to a physician in 12% of Finnish adults, which indicates the proportion of all the visits attributable to this disease group.In addition to public registers and national interview surveys, repeated health examination surveys are necessary for studying the prevalence of common musculoskeletal disorders and for monitoring their development.
Author: Leena Kaila‐Kangas
Language: English
Field: Health Professions
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W281524177