title: Investigating well-being, work limitations and preferences for self-management education and peer support among younger people with hip and knee osteoarthritis: protocol for a cross-sectional study.
abstract: Osteoarthritis (OA) has traditionally been considered a condition of older age. However, younger people are also affected by hip and knee OA, often as a result of sporting and work-related injuries. As OA studies have generally focused on older individuals, little is known about the experience of younger adults with hip or knee OA who can face a distinct set of pressures including work responsibilities and parenting roles. This study aims to investigate well-being and work participation among younger people with hip or knee OA, as well as preferences for OA education and support.
  
  
  
  200 people aged 20-55 years with a diagnosis of hip and/or knee OA will be recruited for this cross-sectional study. Participants will be recruited from three major public hospitals in the state of Victoria, Australia following screening of orthopaedic outpatient clinic lists and referrals, and through community-based advertisements. A study questionnaire will be mailed to all participants and written informed consent obtained. Validated measures of Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL), health status, psychological distress and work limitations will be used. Information on health services use will be collected, in addition to information on the perceived utility and accessibility of a range of existing and proposed education and peer support models. HRQoL data will be compared with Australian population norms using independent t tests, and associations between HRQoL, health status, psychological distress, work limitations and demographic factors will be evaluated using univariate and multivariate analyses. Data on the perceived utility and accessibility of education and peer support models will be analysed descriptively.
  
  
  
  Ethics approval for the study has been obtained. The study findings will be submitted to peer-reviewed journals and arthritis consumer organisations for broader dissemination, and presented at national and international scientific meetings.
authors: Melbourne EpiCentre, The University of Melbourne and The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne, Australia.
authors: Ilana N
authors: IN
authors: Ackerman
authors: Richard S
authors: RS
authors: Page
authors: Peter
authors: P
authors: Schoch
authors: Caroline A
authors: CA
authors: Brand
keywords: EPIDEMIOLOGY
references: Orthopedics. 2010 Dec 01;33(12):876
references: 21162506
references: Aust N Z J Public Health. 2001 Dec;25(6):494-7
references: 11824981
references: Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2011 Nov;63 Suppl 11:S383-412
references: 22588759
references: J Bone Joint Surg Br. 2011 Apr;93(4):449-55
references: 21464481
references: Arthritis Rheum. 2005 Oct 15;53(5):653-8
references: 16208653
references: Arthritis Rheum. 2007 Jun 15;57(5):738-47
references: 17530672
references: Health Qual Life Outcomes. 2006 Mar 23;4:19
references: 16556304
references: Aust N Z J Public Health. 2005 Apr;29(2):136-42
references: 15915617
references: N Engl J Med. 2000 Apr 6;342(14):1016-22
references: 10749964
references: Arthritis Rheum. 2001 Oct;45(5):453-61
references: 11642645
references: MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2005 May 20;54(19):484-8
references: 15902071
references: J Rheumatol. 2012 May;39(5):1047-55
references: 22382340
references: Arthritis Rheum. 2008 Jan;58(1):15-25
references: 18163481
references: Health Educ Behav. 2003 Feb;30(1):44-63
references: 12564667
references: BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2012 Dec 20;13:254
references: 23253742
references: Arthritis Rheum. 2007 Apr 15;57(3):355-63
references: 17394215
references: Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2010 Jan 15;62(1):28-37
references: 20191488
references: Aging Clin Exp Res. 2005 Aug;17(4):255-63
references: 16285189
references: Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2011 Nov;63 Suppl 11:S337-49
references: 22588755
references: Psychol Med. 2002 Aug;32(6):959-76
references: 12214795
references: Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2011 Jul;63(7):953-62
references: 21360695