One year in an Alaskan arthritis clinic

During 1997 visits were made by 852 individuals to an arthritis clinic in Alaska serving predominantly Alaska Natives. Three hundred twenty- seven of these were seen for the first time. The ratio of women to men was 3:1. Rheumatoid Arthritis was the most common arthritic condition seen, followed by Degenerative Joint Disease and Spondyloarthropathies. Three hundred five Tlingit and 246 Eskimo made up 65% of the patients seen that year. Methotrexate was the most frequently used Disease Modifying Antirheumatic Drug but the other such drugs were prescribed as well. Recording demographic and clinical information on a portable computer at the time of visit provided record linkage and the data for this report and was used in Health Care Planning.