Osteoarthritis: quality of life, comorbidities, medication and health service utilization assessed in a large sample of primary care patients

Objective To assess the gender related impact of osteoarthritis (OA) on quality of life (QoL) and health service utilization (HSU) of primary care patients in Germany.Methods Cross sectional study with 1250 OA patients attending 75 primary care practices from March to May 2005. QoL was assessed using the GERMAN-AIMS2-SF. Data about comorbidities, prescriptions, health service utilization, and physical activity were obtained by questioning patients or from the patients' medical files. Depression was assessed by means of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9).Results 1021 (81.7%) questionnaires were returned. 347 (34%) patients were male. Impact of OA on QoL was different between gender: women achieved significantly higher scores in the AIMS 2-SF dimensions lower body (p Conclusion The extent to which OA impacts men and women differs in primary care patients. This might have resulted in the revealed differences in the pharmacological treatment and the HSU. Further research is needed to confirm our findings and to assess causality.