Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people are living with (a) arthritis and (b) musculoskeletal conditions in Knowsley constituency.

In 2023/24, 1,261 people in Knowsley, or 0.9% of patients, aged 16 years old and over had rheumatoid arthritis recorded on the practice disease register. This data is from the Fingertips data collection and is based on Quality and Outcomes Framework, with further information available at the following link:

https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/profile/msk/data#page/6/gid/1938133150/pat/6/par/E12000002/ati/501/are/E08000011/iid/91269/age/164/sex/4/cat/-1/ctp/-1/yrr/1/cid/4/tbm/1/page-options/ine-vo-0_ine-yo-1:2023:-1:-1_ine-ct-163_ine-pt-0

Where local authority values are presented, these were calculated by assigning all patients of the general practice (GP) to the local authority where the GP is located.

We do not have data on the total number of people living with a musculoskeletal (MSK) condition in Knowsley. The count for MSK prevalence is not included in the Fingertips data collection, as the indicator is based on a survey. As such, the count would only reflect the survey sample, and not the population with MSK in any particular local authority. However, 24.6% of people aged 16 years old and over in Knowsley reported a long-term MSK condition in 2023. Further information is available at the following link:

https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/profile/msk/data#page/4/gid/1938133186/pat/6/par/E12000002/ati/501/are/E08000011/iid/93377/age/164/sex/4/cat/-1/ctp/-1/yrr/1/cid/4/tbm/1/page-options/ine-vo-0_ine-yo-1:2023:-1:-1_ine-ct-163_ine-pt-0

This indicator is a self-reported prevalence from the GP Patient Survey, it is not a diagnosed prevalence rate. The definition of long term is a condition lasting or expected to last 12 months or more. Local authority prevalence is based on residential postcode.