Ignoring back pain proving costly for young men

Arthritis South Australia today warned an increasing number of young South Australian men are putting their future back and joint health at risk by ignoring the warning signs of Ankylosing Spondylitis and not getting early treatment.

Arthritis SA’s Dr Simon Burnet said back pain and aching joints are too often overlooked or dismissed as everyday ‘aches and pains’ when something a lot more serious is often underlying these symptoms.
 
“Currently in the GP’s clinic up to 5% of all back pain suffering is due to Ankylosing Spondylitis or its associated types of arthritis,”said Dr Burnett.
 
“Ankylosing Spondylitis is a potentially disabling type of arthritis that occurs in up to 1.0% of the population.
 
“It is characterised by pain, disability and progressive loss of movement of the spine.
 
“The longer people ignore the warning signs and put off getting medical help the harder it becomes for their condition to be treated and managed.
 
“Traditionally, men are slow to seek medical or health advice and this is made worse by most young men not even considering the possibility of having arthritis and instead, viewing arthritis as an old person’s condition.
 
“Two thirds of people living with arthritis are experiencing significant pain, disability, effects on their work capacity and social isolation.
 
“Early intervention with treatment and pain management can significantly improve a person’s quality of life.”
 
Ankylosing Spondylitis is two to three times more common in men than women and primarily strikes young people in their teens and twenties.
 
The exact number of Australians suffering Ankylosing Spondylitis is unknown but it is estimated to be up to 200,000.
 
Arthritis SA is becoming aware of more young men seeking their advice and support who’ve lived with pain for years before getting a proper diagnosis and a treatment and management plan in place.
 
Nigel Stevens from Queenstown, South Australia, was diagnosed with Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS) after living with back pain for many years.
 
Eighteen months ago the pain intensified and Nigel sought help from his local GP who referred him to a rheumatologist.
 
After undergoing two MRI scans, Nigel was referred for a gene test to see if he tested positive for HLA-B27 after his rheumatologist suspected Ankylosing Spondylitis.
 
Nine out of ten people with Ankylosing Spondylitis test positive for the gene although the gene is also present in 8% of the general population including healthy people without AS.
 
Nigel tested positive for HLA-B27 and a diagnosis of AS was later confirmed. He’s now being treated with a specialist drug and is undergoing a pain management program developed by Arthritis SA.
 
Nigel said he never suspected arthritis and hadn’t heard of AS until he was diagnosed.
 
“I’d only heard of rheumatoid and osteoarthritis but later found out there are over 150 types of arthritis,” said Nigel.
 
According to Arthritis SA Chief Executive Officer Julie Black, “It’s the lack of understanding of arthritis in the community that’s leading to people not getting diagnosed earlier.”
 
“Arthritis SA research found that South Australians lack an understanding of arthritis with 80 per cent of those surveyed thinking arthritis only impacted certain segments of the population, mainly older people.
 
“It also found that more than 90,000 people living with arthritis in SA don’t know the type of arthritis they’re suffering from, which shows they’re not getting access to the right advice and support to manage their condition,” said Ms Black.
 
Arthritis SA runs regular arthritis information sessions for the public including sessions on specific forms of arthritis.
 
For more information, visit www.arthritissa.org.au

ISSUED BY HUGHES PUBLIC RELATIONS: Please contact Simon Hatcher on (08) 8412 4100 or simon@hughespr.com.au