Professor Nina Østerås, head of the Unit for Health Services Research, gave an abstract presentation about the SAMBA study's eight-year link to the prosthesis register.
Østerås has led several studies related to osteoarthritis. Her work, together with colleague Tuva Moseng and international collaboration, has resulted in treatment recommendations for osteoarthritis in the hip and knee.
Educational program on osteoarthritis
This year's OARSI congress was entitled, Breaking barriers through multi-disciplinary research. The participants from Diakonhjemmet hospital and REMEDY, Anne Therese Tveter, Tuva Moseng, Lars Martinsen, Daniel Huseby Bordvik and Nina Østerås also took part in a pre-congress workshop, where Atlas, a training program on osteoarthritis, for healthcare personnel was presented. This is a project that Nina Østerås and Tuva Moseng have been part of.
Insights from the Congress
The congress otherwise consisted of many modules, and some of what was worth taking home was, among other things, that how you give information to patients has a lot to say. Content and the words used affect the outcome. It emerged that the time the patient gets to talk before the health personnel interrupts is an average of 11 seconds. It was emphasized that it was of value to listen longer to the patient in order to get the best possible outcome.
Another important insight was about obesity in combination with sarcopenia and osteoarthritis: It emerged as very important to also measure body composition, not just BMI, to ensure that the patients have not lost too much muscle through weight loss. Slimming drugs that are used to reduce BMI often have unfavorable outcomes for the future due to loss of muscle. Muscle mass that disappears is difficult to get back.
Findings were also presented which suggest that atopic eczema is a potential risk factor for developing osteoarthritis. Studies also show that challenges with sleep have a strong influence on pain.
AI was also a topic, and it was discussed whether a scheme with reference to blue prescription apps could be a way to go. There is much that remains related to payment, necessary updating of the apps and rights.
It also emerged that many articles within "Basic Science" that are available on, for example, PubMed, are fake. There were posts that estimated that as much as 25% of articles are not to be trusted.
About OARSI
The Osteoarthritis Research Society International (OARSI) is the leading medical society for advancing the understanding, early detection, treatment and prevention of osteoarthritis (OA) through its exclusive dedication to research. OARSI's passion and area of focus is on OA, a debilitating disease affecting more than 600 million people around the world. With more than 30 years of experience serving the OA community, OARSI provides the necessary framework, expert resources and support for its international constituents to address the challenges of OA so that the knowledge gained can ultimately be used to help improve patient care and patient outcomes.
Read more on OARSI's website: https://oarsi.org/
