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Illness experiences in middle‐aged adults with early‐stage knee osteoarthritis: findings from a qualitative study
Author(s) -
Kao MeiHua,
Tsai YunFang
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of advanced nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.948
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 1365-2648
pISSN - 0309-2402
DOI - 10.1111/jan.12313
Subject(s) - osteoarthritis , nonprobability sampling , qualitative research , medicine , physical therapy , psychological intervention , disease , middle age , gerontology , alternative medicine , nursing , population , social science , environmental health , pathology , sociology
Aim To understand the illness experiences of middle‐aged adults with early knee osteoarthritis. Background Knee osteoarthritis is one of the most common causes of lower limb disability in middle‐aged adults and older people. Nurses lack understanding of the illness experiences of middle‐aged patients who were confirmed to have early knee osteoarthritis and of how they manage the disease in Taiwan. Design A qualitative descriptive design was applied. Methods Participants with knee osteoarthritis, aged 40–55 years, were recruited by purposive sampling ( n = 17). The data were collected through semi‐structured interviews from July–December 2010. All interview transcripts were analysed using qualitative inductive content analysis to identify key themes. Findings Illness experiences of the seventeen participants were classified into three major themes: (i) unfamiliarity with osteoarthritis; (ii) effects on daily life; and (iii) protection and alleviation. The three main themes occurred repeatedly and affected the life experiences of the patients. Conclusions This study indicates that patients with osteoarthritis have insufficient knowledge related to disease process and they do not know how to cope effectively. They need healthcare providers to supply them with adequate osteoarthritis disease information. Nurses should also develop interventions in their practices and guide patients to use suitable techniques to improve the functional status of their knee joint(s).