A national osteoarthritis strategy released late last year noted that one out of four Australians living with the condition report having only fair or poor health.

The strategy, endor­sed by peak patient and doctor organisations, said the ­disease was a growing and costly health ­burden, and that combatting it required a new mindset supporting patients on a ‘whole-person journey’.

In a similar vein, musculoskeletal experts recently called on doctors to help change the way patients with knee osteoarthritis think about their symptoms.

Patient myths that need to be busted included that exercise was dangerous, pain equalled damage and that surgery was the only hope of relief, they wrote in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.