Written question asked by Bob Spink (Conservative) on Wednesday, 16 March 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 24 March 2005. It was answered by Stephen Ladyman (Labour) on Thursday, 24 March 2005 on behalf of the Department of Health.

Dept of Health

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many children in England suffer from juvenile idiopathic arthritis; how many adults in England suffer from (a) inflammatory arthritis, (b) psoriatic arthritis and (c) moderate to severe osteoarthritis of hands, knees or hips.

Answer: Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many children in England suffer from juvenile idiopathic arthritis; [223187] (2) how many adults in England suffer from (a) inflammatory arthritis, (b) psoriatic arthritis and (c) moderate to severe osteoarthritis of hands, knees or hips. [223188] Dr. Ladyman: The Department does not routinely and comprehensively collect the data requested. Epidemiological data for arthritis is, in the main, collected in surveys or from registers, the main sources being Government, academic institutions and charitable organisations. We are aware that the Arthritis Research Council, a respected major charity, commissioned a large scale study of epidemiological data on arthritis. The Department has not validated its findings. However, it showed that: At least 4.4 million people in the United Kingdom have x-ray evidence of moderate to severe osteoarthritis of the hands; 0.55 million of the knees and 0.21 million of the hips1. Approximately 387,000 people are estimated to have rheumatoid arthritis (one of the inflammatory arthritides). Around 12,000 children in the UK have juvenile idiopathic arthritis. 1 Source: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey [NHANES] survey, United States of America.

Secondary information