Degenerative joint disease in a Jamaican rural population

ABSTRACT

The prevalence of degenerative joint disease has been measured in a random sample of adults aged 35-64 years living in a rural area in Jamaica and compared with that found in similar surveys in the United Kingdom. Radiological evidence of osteo-arthrosis in general showed the same prevalence in the two races, with the exception of certain joints which showed significant differences. Lumbar disk degeneration was also found to have a similar prevalence, though the involvement of multiple disks was significantly more common in Jamaica. Cervical disk degeneration was both more common and more severe in Jamaica. Symptoms in Jamaica were less frequent in relation to all sites of osteo-arthrosis except the cervical spine, and Jamaicans seemed to have fewer symptoms and less incapacity than Englishmen with the same degree of disk degeneration.(Summary)