FRI0620 Low educational attainment is associated with poor patient status at the initial visit of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or osteoarthritis (OA) at the initial visit to a rheumatology setting, with similar patterns in patients with either diagnosis

Background:

Low educational attainment is associated with a higher prevalence, morbidity, and mortality of many diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis (RA) (J Chronic Dis 1985; 38:973–84) and osteoarthritis (OA) (J Clin Epidemiol 1992;45:139–47). These associations often are attributed to limited access of disadvantaged people to medical services (Ann Intern Med 1998;129:412–6), although some have suggested that these differences are...