We trail in the league of care for patients with arthritis.

Byline: Petrina Vousden Health Editor

A LEADING consultant has expressed 'serious concern' as a report shows Ireland is low on a European league when it comes to the number of specialists available to treat arthritis patients.

Ireland is third from the bottom on the table of 25 European countries showing the ratio of consultants per 100,000 of the population.

Only Turkey and Portugal have fewer consultant rheumatologists for patients suffering from conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis.

There are 50 consultant rheumatologists in Ireland. The Fit For Work report launched at the European Parliament in Brussels yesterday shows Ireland has 1.1 rheumatologist per 100,000 people.

This compares with Switzerland which is top of the list with 5.5 rheumatologists per 100,000 people. Turkey is bottom of the pile with 0.2 rheumatologists per 100,000 people.

Professor Oliver FitzGerald, consultant Rheumatologist at St Vincent's University Hospital Dublin, said: 'The fact that Ireland ranks among the bottom three in terms of the number of consultant posts across Europe is of serious concern.

'Anecdotally, we are aware that patients can wait as long as four years for a consultant appointment and therefore access to treatment.' And John Church, Chief Executive of Arthritis Ireland, said the intensification of work, an aging population and rising rates of obesity are all risk factors of musculoskeletal disorders in the working-age population for - and will continue to be for another 20 years or more.

The study, conducted across 25 countries in Europe and beyond by Britishbased research organisation The Work Foundation, found 100 million Europeans suffer from chronic musculoskeletal pain. Up to 40 per cent have to give up work due to their condition.

Mr Church added: 'The Fit For Work study clearly suggests that early intervention if a key factor in allowing people with MSDs to remain in work.' One in six people in Ireland has some form of arthritis. About 40,000 people have the severe inflammatory form called rheumatoid arthritis.

The Irish Fit for Work report estimates that the cost of musculoskeletal disorders in Ireland runs at E750million and that seven million work days are lost annually as a result of MSDs.