Eefje Van Helvoort
Osteoarthritis: Towards a progressive APPROACH
Despite many attempts, there is still no curative treatment for osteoarthritis. One possible explanation lies in the current approach to the disease. At the moment, all osteoarthritis patients are treated in the same way and the treatment is aimed at symptom control, while the causes for these symptoms can differ per patient. In the APPROACH study described in my thesis, 300 people are followed for two years and existing and new outcome measures are used to define different phenotypes of osteoarthritis. Ultimately, this will improve the quality of trials into new osteoarthritis medications and the treatment of people with osteoarthritis.