Official Statistics

Musculoskeletal conditions profile: short commentary, December 2020

Published 1 December 2020

Applies to England

New in this update

The following 2 indicators have been updated with new data points:

• osteoporosis: Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) prevalence (aged 50 and over)
• rheumatoid arthritis: QOF prevalence (aged 16 and over)

The following indicator has been revised and updated:

• percentage reporting a long term musculoskeletal (MSK) problem

We have published revised estimates for the percentage of people reporting a long term MSK problem, after the identification of an error in the production of the denominator values. As a result of the issue, invalid responses were included in the calculation of the denominator. This means the figures published previously under-reported the percentage of people reporting a long term MSK problem. At England level, this has increased the estimated prevalence of those with a long term MSK problem by 2 percentage points.

The revised statistics, covering 2018 and 2019, have been published together with the latest 2020 data. There have been changes to the prevalence figures previously published, but the general differences between areas and groups are unchanged. Pre-2018 data has been temporarily withdrawn.

This error also affects the calculation of the percentage reporting at least 2 long term conditions, at least 1 of which is MSK related. Data for this indicator has been temporarily withdrawn and revised estimates will be published in due course.

Summary of updated indicators

This summary focuses on England level data. The musculoskeletal conditions profile presents indicators at the local authority level in addition to regional and England values.

Percentage reporting a long term MSK problem

The percentage of people aged 18 and over reporting an MSK condition, either long term back pain or long term joint pain, was 18.5% in 2020. This represents a relatively small, but statistically significant decrease from the 2018 and 2019 level (19.0%).

In 2020, males remained less likely to report a long term MSK problem than females (15.9% and 20.9% respectively).

The percentage of adults reporting a long term MSK condition showed an increase with age, from 3.1% among 18 to 24-year-olds to 52.4% among those aged 85 and over.

When looking at different ethnic groups, those who identified as White Gypsy or Irish Traveller (27.5%), White Irish (24.3%), White British (21.2%), or Black Caribbean (20.1%) remained most likely to report a long term MSK problem and those who identified as Chinese (6.2%) or Any other white background (7.8%) were the least likely.

Osteoporosis: QOF prevalence (50+)

The percentage of patients (aged 50 and over) with osteoporosis recorded on the GP practice disease register was 0.9% in 2019 to 2020.

Rheumatoid arthritis: QOF prevalence (16+)

The percentage of patients (aged 16 and over) with rheumatoid arthritis recorded on the practice disease register was 0.8% in 2019 to 2020.

Background

Musculoskeletal conditions are the leading cause of pain and disability in England and are one of the biggest causes of sickness absence and productivity loss.

The aim of the musculoskeletal conditions profile is to provide meaningful data, on a single platform, to enable the commissioning of high value musculoskeletal services. Musculoskeletal data is essential for understanding the health needs of local populations, the amount of people accessing services, the cost of services and the outcomes services deliver.

If you would like to get in touch about the musculoskeletal conditions profile, please contact msk.enquiries@phe.gov.uk.