AB1335 AGE-RELATED MUSCULOSKELETAL STIFFNESS AMONGST HEALTHY SUBJECTS

Abstract

Background: A patient questionnaire for evaluating musculoskeletal stiffness (MSQ) has been developed for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) (Halls 2015) and also tested in chikungunya disease. Joint stiffness is associated with older age in adults. Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the variation in MSQ scores with age in a cohort of healthy adults. Methods: Subjects ≥18 years old were enrolled at two sites. Subjects were engaged in, or had completed, tertiary education. Subjects with a diagnosis of joint disease, Parkinson’s disease or multiple sclerosis were excluded. Each subject completed a 21-item questionnaire designed to evaluate the severity of musculoskeletal stiffness, its physical impact and psychosocial impact, and to provide an overall stiffness score. Results are expressed as a percentage of the maximum possible score. Results: Two hundred and fifty-eight subjects were included, 120 males and 138 females. Subjects were >95% Caucasian. The mean age of subjects was 40±16 years. No differences were seen in the stiffness scores between males and females. The percentage of subjects reporting any stiffness was over 50% in every age group, and markedly higher in those aged ≥60 years (Table). The average overall MSQ scores and those of its three components were low and showed little variation between the three lower age cohorts, but scores increased in the upper age cohort (Table). Conclusion: The prevalence of musculoskeletal stiffness in healthy subjects as measured with this questionnaire is not negligible. Overall stiffness scores in this study were low in the subjects aged 18-59 years when compared to those in RA and chikungunya disease. However, the high frequency of stiffness and the higher average scores in the upper age cohort suggest that the background joint stiffness amongst older subjects should be considered when interpreting stiffness scores in patients.