
TUESDAY, Aug. 22, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- The degenerative joint disease osteoarthritis affects 15% of the global population over age 30, so by 2050 that could be nearly 1 billion people, researchers say. Living longer and obesity are both major contributors. “With the key drivers of people living longer and a growing world population, we need to anticipate stress on health systems in most countries,†said study author Jaimie Steinmetz, lead research scientist at Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) in Seattle.“There is no effective cure for osteoarthritis right now, so it’s critical that we focus on strategies of prevention, early intervention, and making expensive, effective treatments like joint replacements more affordable in low- and middle-income...