Demographic and Socioeconomic Characteristics Among Primary Health Care Users Diagnosed with Osteoarthritis in Albania

AIM: The aim of this study was to describe the distribution of demographic factors and socioeconomic characteristics among primary health care users diagnosed with osteoarthritis in Albania, a transitional country in the Western Balkans. METHODS: This study included all individuals diagnosed with osteoarthritis during January 2013 – December 2014 in selected primary health care centers in Tirana, the capital city of Albania. Overall, 1179 adult individuals were diagnosed with osteoarthritis (521 men and 658 women) during this time period. The overall mean age of study participants was 59.0±10.1 years (60.1±10.6 years in men and 58.1±9.6 years in women). The diagnosis of osteoarthritis was based on the history of the disease, physical examination, laboratory findings and radiological findings. Binary logistic regression was used to assess the sex-differences regarding demographic factors and socioeconomic characteristics among participants diagnosed with osteoarthritis. RESULTS: In multivariable-adjusted logistic regression models, female gender was inversely associated with the age-group (OR=0.67, 95%CI=0.47-0.95) and educational level (OR=0.39, 95%CI=0.25-0.61), but positively related to rural birthplace (OR=1.47, 95%CI=1.14-1.89) and unemployment (OR=1.40, 95%CI=1.02-1.92) of the patients diagnosed with osteoarthritis. CONCLUSION: Our findings provide novel evidence about the distribution of demographic factors and socioeconomic characteristics among adult individuals diagnosed with osteoarthritis in primary health care services in Albania. Future studies should assess the distribution of the major risk factors for osteoarthritis among adult men and women in transitional Albania.