Evaluation of i̇llness perceptions in the light of personal experiences of partients with the diagnosis of osteoarthritis

Introduction: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a musculosketal disorder and it is chronic disease with a high incidence of morbidity and mortality. İllness perception is an individual's beliefs about his/ her own disease. It is important to know what symptoms are attributed to the disease, how to deal with the disease, and what is learned about the disease in order to affect its behavior in order tos tay healthy. The aim of this study was evaluate the life experiences of patients with Osteoarthritis and how they perceived their disease. Materials and Methods: The study was a mix type study. Two types of research methods, quantitative and descriptive cross- sectional, were used. The sample of the study consisted of 50 patients who were admitted to Yeditepe University Hospital Orthopedics and Traumatology Department with the diagnosis of Osteoarthritis and underwent knee arthroplasty. The patients consitute the individual in depth interview group. Thematic analysis method was used in the analysis of quantitative data. Percentage and avarage analysis method was used in the analysis of descriptive data. The data related to sociodemographic variables of the illness perception scale were analyzed using percentage, mean ± standard deviation, Mann- Whitney U test and Kruskal Wallis test (Mann- Whitney U test in paired comparisons). p< 0.05 was accepted as significant. Results: Four themes and sub-themes of these these themes were identified as " illness perception", "effects of illness", "treatment" and "nature of illness" as a result of individual in depth interviews with patients who were scheduled to have a knee replacement operastion with the diagnosis of osteoarthritis. In this study with OA patients, the average age of the patients was 69.84±7.15 years and 92% were female. The results of our study showed that the most common symptoms patients experiences since the onset of their illness were pain (96%), joint stiffness (96%), fatique (94%), loss of power (86%), and sleep difficulties (48%). While sociodemographic variables such as gender, educatonal status, and place of residence were found to have an effect on illness perception, no significant relationship was found between variables such as marital status, surgical experience, and chronic disease presence and illness perception. Conclusion: It is important to evaluate the perceptions of the disease, if necessary, by making planned interventions with multidiciplinary approach and providing support to the individuals from the moment they are diagnosed with knee OA. Key Words: Osteoarthritis, illness perception, personal experience, life experience, knee replacement, arthroplasty.