The impact of musculoskeletal disorders incidence on quality of life: an inception cohort study

Christian H Roux ¹, Francis Guillemin ^2*, Stephanie Boini ², Fleur Longuetaud ², Nathalie Arnault ³, Serge Hercberg ³ and Serge Briançon ²

¹ Service de Rhumatologie, hopital de Nice, France
² EA3444. Ecole de santé publique, Faculté de médecine Nancy, France
³ Unité mixte de recherche Inserm/Inra/cnam, 5 rue vertbois, Paris-France

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: francis.guillemin{at}sante-pub.u-nancy.fr.

Accepted 12 August 2004

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To longitudinally assess the impact of new onset musculoskeletal (MSK) disorders on quality of life (QoL).

METHODS: An inception cohort of 1202 subjects in France aged 45-60 years was determined to be free of MSK problems at baseline. Over 28 months of follow-up between 1996 and 1998, 310 were diagnosed with MSK disorders and matched with 620 healthy age- and sex- matched controls. The impact of the MSK disorder onset on QoL was assessed in terms of the change in SF-36 dimension scores over time, using a linear mixed ANOVA model to compare the groups.

RESULTS: The incidence of MSK disorder was 13.6 percent per person-year in the spine, 4.2 percent per person-year in a joint, and 4.6 percent per person-year at an extra-articular site. The greatest change in QoL was a 10-point drop in the 100-point SF-36 Bodily Pain dimension scale in the MSK group. Compared with controls, subjects with an MSK disorder experienced significantly greater reductions in the following dimensions: Bodily Pain (a -7.4-point difference in change), Vitality (-2.7), General Health (-1.8) and Physical Functioning (-1.3). Within the MSK group, chronic disorders had a greater impact than acute ones on the Physical Functioning (-2.1), Role Emotional (- 8.4) and Social Functioning (-5.9) dimensions.

CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that new onset MSK disorders have a marked deleterious effect on QoL in physical domain, with lesser effects on social and mental functioning. This evidence of an early significant impact on their QoL reinforces recent recommendations for early treatment and primary prevention.

Keywords: incidence, longitudinal study, musculoskeletal disorders, quality of life

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