Bone and Joint Week

Given this is Bone and Joint Week (12-20 October), the UCO is joining with others to raise the awareness of musculoskeletal (MSK) health and wellbeing.   

MSK-related problems and issues with the bones, muscles and joints, are the UK’s biggest cause of ill-health and the second largest cause of work absence, with an estimated 28 million working days lost per year1. More years are lived with a musculoskeletal disability than any other long-term condition. 

There are more than 200 musculoskeletal conditions which: 

• affect 1 in 4 of the adult population (many being young and of working age) which is around 9.6 million adults and 12,000 children in the UK  (Graham Stringer (2011), Hansard, col: 1342)  account for
• 30% of GP consultations, in England (Department of Health (2006), A Joint Responsibility: doing it differently, pp 16);  are associated with a large number of co-morbidities, including diabetes, depression
• and obesity (Arthritis Research UK (2013), Musculoskeletal Health: a public health approach);  account for over 25% of all surgical interventions in the NHS, and this is set to rise significantly over the next ten years (Arthritis Research UK (2013, Musculoskeletal Health: a public health approach);
• account for £4.76 billion of NHS spending each year (Department of Health (2011), Programme Budgeting Data 2009-10, June). 

However, even if you have an MSK-related condition, life doesn’t have to stop.  

Osteopathy, an allied health profession recognised by the NHS can help those with MSK conditions so that they remain active and maintain their quality of life.  

The UCO has an osteopathy clinic, which offers affordable care to all. If MSK is affecting your life negatively then osteopathy may be able to help improve the quality of your life.  

Credit 

Parts of this article are based on sources from the NHS supplied under Open Government License v3.0