Medical Forum
Calls for osteoarthritis to be embedded in primary care
Osteoarthritis should be integrated into primary and chronic disease care as part of an approach to slow the disease burden, experts have said.
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Medical Forum
Almost one billion people globally are expected to be living with osteoarthritis by 2050, up from 600 million in 2023.
A group of international experts, led by Curtin University, have released a health policy roadmap on World Arthritis Day, setting out three key priority areas to reduce the growing burden of osteoarthritis.
The roadmap highlights that osteoarthritis remains under-recognised in health policies globally, inadequately integrated into healthcare delivery for chronic diseases, and inconsistently and often inappropriately treated and prevented.
Three priorities to address this include:
- Recognising and responding to osteoarthritis through national data on its burden and cost, and by writing musculoskeletal health into national policy
- Scaling up high-quality, affordable, person-centred care, including by integrating osteoarthritis into primary and chronic disease care and changing how the condition is talked about
- Slowing its growth by targeting excess body weight and joint injury, including workplace and sport-related injuries.
Lead author Professor Andrew Briggs, from Curtin University’s School of Allied Health, said osteoarthritis is often perceived and dismissed as an unavoidable part of ageing.
“It is not integrated into service models for chronic diseases, and remains largely invisible in national health policies,” he said.
“The scale of the burden of osteoarthritis demands a health policy response that recognises and measures the burden, integrates osteoarthritis care with other conditions, and targets prevention through excess body weight and joint injury control measures.
“Community beliefs around osteoarthritis also need to shift from a narrative that it’s an older person’s condition and nothing can be done, to a narrative that empowers people to manage their symptoms and maintain their valued life activities.”
Co-senior author Professor David Hunter from The University of Sydney said there was opportunity to shift osteoarthritis care away from low-value treatments and towards prevention, early intervention and approaches that help people live well.
“This starts with reframing how people think about and respond to osteoarthritis. Descriptions like ‘bone on bone’ or ‘wear and tear’ are outdated and often drive disengagement in care,” he said.
“Instead, reframing osteoarthritis symptoms as not inevitably progressive and modifiable can better support people to participate in their care.
“Although there are currently no disease-modifying drugs for osteoarthritis, we do know there are effective ways to help people manage osteoarthritis, but too many people are still receiving care that does not reflect the best available evidence.”
A lived experience
Professor George Milne from UWA lives with osteoarthritis.
"Living with osteoarthritis changes more than just your joints. It can change what you do, where you go and how you think about your future. There are days when something as simple as walking, exercising or doing the things you normally enjoy can become much harder because of pain.
"What I would want people to understand is that osteoarthritis is not just a normal part of getting older that you should have to accept. People living with it need to feel heard, supported and confident that there are things they can do to manage their condition.," he said.
The researchers warn rising obesity rates, population ageing and increasing numbers of joint injuries are projected to drive a further surge in osteoarthritis cases in coming decades.
Professor Briggs said excess body weight and joint injuries were among the clearest opportunities to reduce the future burden of osteoarthritis, particularly anterior cruciate ligament injuries in Australia.
He warned osteoarthritis had become “hidden in plain sight” despite it costing around 1-2.5% of GDP.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare reporting late last year found WA’s health system expenditure for osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and long-term back problems are conservatively forecast to exceed $2.25 billion in 2045. It cost $1.03 billion in 2025.
The international team included experts from 18 countries across Australia, Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas. The roadmap was published in The Lancet.