An Exploration of the Incidence Rate of Anxiety and Depression Following a Diagnosis of Osteoarthritis Using the THIN Dataset
Author(s)
Ben Hammond, MSci1, Samuel Cusworth, MSc1, Illin Gani, MSc1, Bianca Ungureanu, -1, Katherine Blundell-Doyle, -1, Neil Cockburn, MBChB1, Caroline Eteve-Pitsaer, MSc2, Christian Billinghurst, MPH3, Karim Raza, PhD1, Joht Singh Chandan, PhD1.
1University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom, 2Cegedim Health data, Boulogne-Billancourt, France, 3Dexter, London, United Kingdom.
1University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom, 2Cegedim Health data, Boulogne-Billancourt, France, 3Dexter, London, United Kingdom.
OBJECTIVES: Osteoarthritis is the most common form of joint arthritis within the UK. It’s caused by mechanical wear and over time leads to stiffness and pain within a joint area. The disability and pain associated with osteoarthritis can have a significant effect on a patient’s quality of life and existing literature has highlighted a link between chronic osteoarthritis and the development of mental health conditions such as anxiety or depression.
METHODS: We explored trends in the development of mental health conditions following a diagnosis of osteoarthritis. To do this, we calculated the yearly incidence rate of new cases of anxiety and depression following osteoarthritis between January 1st 2006 and December 31st 2021. We used The Health Improvement Network [THIN] database, a large dataset of primary care records from UK general practices, extracted using Dexter. The exposure and outcomes were detected using Read codes and all results were age and sex standardised with UK mid-year population estimate from 2021.
RESULTS: Between 2006 and 2019, the incidence rate of depression diagnosed after osteoarthritis fell from 3748 [CI: 2397-5225] per 100,000 person years to 1305 [1068-1555] per 100,000 person years. The incidence rate of anxiety diagnosed after osteoarthritis remained stable, with an incidence rate of 1142 [885-1434] in 2006 and 1430 [1101-1778] in 2019. During the period affected by Covid-19, the incidence rate for anxiety and depression experienced a limited fall in 2020 (Anxiety: 1218 [907-1416] per 100,00 person years, Depression: 1140 [880-1416]), however, immediately rose in the following year (Anxiety 1300 [979-1643] per 100,00 person years, Depression: 1403 [1085-1742] per 100,00 person years).
CONCLUSIONS: Within osteoarthritis, anxiety and depression both appear to present a similar disease burden. Further research is needed to explore any causal links as well as to investigate whether the burden of mental health diagnosis varies between mechanical and inflammation driven arthritis.
METHODS: We explored trends in the development of mental health conditions following a diagnosis of osteoarthritis. To do this, we calculated the yearly incidence rate of new cases of anxiety and depression following osteoarthritis between January 1st 2006 and December 31st 2021. We used The Health Improvement Network [THIN] database, a large dataset of primary care records from UK general practices, extracted using Dexter. The exposure and outcomes were detected using Read codes and all results were age and sex standardised with UK mid-year population estimate from 2021.
RESULTS: Between 2006 and 2019, the incidence rate of depression diagnosed after osteoarthritis fell from 3748 [CI: 2397-5225] per 100,000 person years to 1305 [1068-1555] per 100,000 person years. The incidence rate of anxiety diagnosed after osteoarthritis remained stable, with an incidence rate of 1142 [885-1434] in 2006 and 1430 [1101-1778] in 2019. During the period affected by Covid-19, the incidence rate for anxiety and depression experienced a limited fall in 2020 (Anxiety: 1218 [907-1416] per 100,00 person years, Depression: 1140 [880-1416]), however, immediately rose in the following year (Anxiety 1300 [979-1643] per 100,00 person years, Depression: 1403 [1085-1742] per 100,00 person years).
CONCLUSIONS: Within osteoarthritis, anxiety and depression both appear to present a similar disease burden. Further research is needed to explore any causal links as well as to investigate whether the burden of mental health diagnosis varies between mechanical and inflammation driven arthritis.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2025-11, ISPOR Europe 2025, Glasgow, Scotland
Value in Health, Volume 28, Issue S2
Code
EPH12
Topic
Epidemiology & Public Health
Topic Subcategory
Disease Classification & Coding, Public Health
Disease
Mental Health (including addition), Systemic Disorders/Conditions (Anesthesia, Auto-Immune Disorders (n.e.c.), Hematological Disorders (non-oncologic), Pain)