Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2015 Dec;42(12):2392-7.
doi: 10.3899/jrheum.150434. Epub 2015 Nov 1.

Native Joint Septic Arthritis: Epidemiology, Clinical Features, and Microbiological Causes in a New Zealand Population

Nicholas Kennedy  1 , Steven T Chambers  1 , Imogen Nolan  1 , Kate Gallagher  1 , Anja Werno  1 , Melanie Browne  1 , Lisa K Stamp  2
Affiliations

Native Joint Septic Arthritis: Epidemiology, Clinical Features, and Microbiological Causes in a New Zealand Population

Nicholas Kennedy et al. J Rheumatol. 2015 Dec.

Abstract

Objective: To determine the epidemiology, clinical features, and microbiology of adult native joint septic arthritis in Canterbury, New Zealand, over a 5-year period in individuals with and without an underlying rheumatic disorder.

Methods: Patients with native joint septic arthritis were identified retrospectively and classified by Newman's criteria. The clinical characteristics were described and comparisons made between those with and without underlying rheumatic disease.

Results: Two hundred forty-eight cases of native joint septic arthritis (mean age 60, range 16-97 yrs) were identified with an overall incidence rate of 12.0/100,000/year (95% CI 10.6-13.6). Yearly incidence increased with age to a maximum of 73.4/100,000 in those > 90 years of age. Septic arthritis was iatrogenic in 16.9% of cases while 27% had an underlying inflammatory arthritis including gout (14.9%), calcium pyrophosphate disease (8.5%), and rheumatoid arthritis (4%). Few patients were taking immunosuppressant therapy, with just 1 taking a biological agent. Staphylococcus aureus was the most commonly identified organism. Those with underlying inflammatory arthritis were significantly older (73.6 yrs vs 55.6 yrs; p < 0.001), more likely to be female (55.2% vs 26.0%; p < 0.001), and to have septic polyarthritis (16.4% vs 4.4%; p = 0.002). The 30-day mortality was 2%, increasing to 6% at 90 days.

Conclusion: The incidence of septic arthritis in Canterbury, New Zealand, is higher than in previous studies. Crystal arthropathy commonly coexisted with infection although autoimmune arthritis and immunosuppression was less of a factor than anticipated.

Keywords: CRYSTAL ARTHROPATHY; EPIDEMIOLOGY; NATIVE JOINT; NEW ZEALAND; SEPTIC ARTHRITIS.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

LinkOut - more resources