Western region more prone to rheumatoid arthritis, says study

The western region of the country is more prone to rheumatoid arthritis whereas uric acid-related issues are found to be more common in southern zone, says a study.
While western zone showed more abnormalities in the levels of rheumatoid factor, a marker of rheumatoid arthritis, uric acid abnormalities were more common in south zone. Uric acid is a commonly prescribed marker of gout, according to SRL Diagnostics study.
A three-year data analysis report on arthritis-related tests done on samples received in its labs from across India showed that the East Zone had highest percentage of abnormal anti-streptolysin O level- a marker of rheumatic fever and joint disease.

As per the report, the 10,000-odd samples tested showed varying degrees of abnormalities in the blood levels of direct and indirect markers of osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gout and rheumatic fever.
The analysis also found that markers of chronic inflammation, a bodily event that goes on continuously in any chronic joint disease, ESR and CRP were raised in most of the samples than any other marker. This is probably due to the fact that Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis affecting the population at large.
The data also showed that abnormal C-Reactive protein (CRP) values were more commonly found in men, while abnormal Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR) values were seen more commonly in women.

"Bone and joint health are crucial aspects, which are usually ignored by the population at large. Millions in India suffer from bone and joint disorders, but doctor visits for management or laboratory visits for regular check-up and testing remain low.
"Medical studies have shown that 15-17 per cent of Indian population suffer from some kind of joint disease with osteoarthritis being on the top. Actually bone and joint disorder is more common than cardiovascular disease and cancer combined," SRL Labs & Strategic Initiatives Director Operations Leena Chatterjee said.