OAFI Foundation Participates in The I Course on Osteoarthritis of The Spanish Society of Rheumatology

On November 19th and 20th, the I SER Course on Osteoarthritis was held, a training activity of the Spanish Society of Rheumatology (SER), aimed at rheumatologists and coordinated by Dr. Francisco Castro and Dr. Cristóbal Orellana (SER Arthrosis Group).

The course was taught by leading specialists such as Dr. Montse Romera, Dr. Francisco Blanco, Dr. Ingrid Möller, Dr. Jordi Monfort and Dr. Herrero Beaumont, among others, who gave different and essential lectures to provide in-depth knowledge of the pathology, update professionals on the latest therapies and propose new lines of research for the treatment of osteoarthritis.

The OAFI Foundation was pleased to be part of this panel of experts with the representation of Dr. Josep Vergés, President and CEO of the Foundation, who spoke to the attendees about care models that allow access to basic recommendations for the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knees and hips. Dr. Vergés emphasized the need to implement a care plan, such as the ARTRO 360º model proposed by OAFI, which provides affected patients with the independence, autonomy, knowledge and information they need to improve their quality of life.

«The ARTRO 360º model can help improve patients’ quality of life».

“Osteoarthritis remains an unknown disease associated with old age. However, it affects a very fragmented population with very different needs, especially older people, women and athletes,” Dr. Vergés also recalled.

Furthermore, we must not forget the great economic impact of osteoarthritis, which currently affects 7 million adults in Spain, around 29.35% of whom are over 40 years of age. “50% of the cost caused by osteoarthritis is due to prostheses,” noted Dr. Orellana.

«50% of the cost caused by osteoarthritis is due to prostheses».

Dr. Castro, coordinator of the event, emphasized that “osteoarthritis is the most frequent joint disease and, despite the great effort of the national and international scientific community, it remains a disease that still has no cure or highly effective treatment with which to achieve sustained remission or effective repair of the joint damage caused by the disease.”

For this reason, the I SER Course on Osteoarthritis aims to become an annual meeting, which arises from the need to share the current state of the pathology and the main problems faced by healthcare professionals both when treating patients efficiently and when launching research initiatives.

«The SER Osteoarthritis Course aims to become an annual meeting with the objective of presenting the current state of the pathology and the main problems to be overcome, both in the treatment of patients and in research».

For a more in-depth look at the subject, you can find below a program on OAFI Radio called “The impact of osteoarthritis in society”, with Dr. Manel Santiñà, Past President of the Spanish Society for Quality Care (SECA), and Dr. Julio Sánchez Fierro, Lawyer and Doctor in Health Sciences:

In addition, do not forget to consult the presentations of the 5th International Congress of Osteoarthritis Patients, which provide a wide range of information in many areas necessary for the osteoarthritis patient and also for his/her family and their environment: