late diagnosis for one million patients – breaking latest news

Rheumatoid arthritis is among the most dreaded and painful rheumatological diseases. Early diagnosis allows rapid therapeutic intervention, with remission of the disease possible in about one out of two cases. However, this does not always happen either for this pathology, which costs the community over 3 billion euros every year – between direct and indirect costs – or for other serious rheumatological diseases. According to Italian Society of Rheumatology (Sir), only 18 percent of patients were able to give a name to their disease within the first three months of the onset of symptoms.

Late diagnosis

«The late diagnoses even concern one million Italians – says the president of SIR, Gian Domenico Sebastiani -. Patients also wait seven years to find out they have psoriatic arthritis or fibromyalgia, five years to be diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis, three years for systemic sclerosis (or scleroderma), two years to be diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. I am times too long, which cause a worsening of symptoms and make recovery and treatment more difficult – underlines the rheumatologist -. You need to make correct information because the sick do not underestimate the pain e
to offer general practitioners the tools suitable for recognizing rheumatological disease and referring the person to a specialist».

disabling consequences

In Italy there are 5.4 million rheumatological patients, therefore one in ten people. «These are very high numbers, which make the need for an intervention evident – ​​underlines Sebastiani -. Many of them present disabling symptoms, with joint damage and consequent disability». Adds Ennio Lubrano di Scorpaniello, SIR vice president: «Many pathologies present difficulties and pains that make it difficult to carry out daily activities; studies show that the 57 percent of rheumatological patients need help in everyday life. Exist complications which they can also be fatal, such as those affecting the lungs and heart. This is why it is essential to involve people in information activities so that they can develop awareness of the importance of contact your doctor that can

refer the patient to a specialist who can quickly place him in a treatment program».

Abandonment of care due to long waits

“If early diagnosis is the first step towards healing or stabilizing symptoms, theadherence to therapies it is essential to allow the achievement of a good quality of life and to avoid a deterioration» – underlined Silvia Tonolo, president of theNational Association of Rheumatological Patients (Anmar) and Roberto Messina, national president of Senior Seniors. «In the post-Covid period there has been a greater discontinuity in treatments: the main cause is le long waiting lists for specialist visits. Patients, once they notice an improvement in symptoms and are unable to get in contact with the rheumatologist, more and more often they decide to interrupt the treatments. This causes, first of all, the worsening of the disease, with the reappearance of pain, secondly, serious difficulties for the doctor in defining an effective personalized therapy”.

Terapie innovative

Today «medicines allow to stop the progression of pathologies with a good recovery of functionality and a satisfactory recovery of one’s professional and personal life – explains the president of rheumatologists Gian Domenico Sebastiani -. This, however, requires timely intervention, starting from the first symptoms. In the last 20 years, progress in research has allowed us to offer innovative therapeutic solutions, with fewer or no side effects and a reduced impact on daily habits. Unfortunately, the identification of the disease is not always simple, because the symptoms are often attributable to other pathologies. For this it is it is essential to invest in updates and training for all specialists, from general practitioners to rheumatologists themselveswho must be able to take care of even the patient with less common characteristics» concludes the president of SIR.

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