The ethnic background of the prevalence of different rheumatological diseases in a tertiary care hospital of North-East India -a hospital-based observational study

Background and aims: The prevalence of rheumatological diseases varies among different populations across the globe. Moreover, different ethnic groups in the same population or geographical regions also show diversity in rheumatological disease epidemiology. We realised that there are not many studies about this beneficial correlation in the North-Eastern part of India. Hence, we decided to report the same. Material and Methods: A total of 800 patients of>12 years of age, irrespective of gender, attended the Rheumatology outpatient department (OPD) of Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Assam, India and fulfilled the standard diagnostic criteria for rheumatological diseases were included in the study. Results: Out of 800 patients in our study, 52.5% had Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), 12% had Spondyloarthropathy (SpA), and 9% had Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE). Other reported disorders were Mixed Connective Tissue Disease (MCTD) (8.6%), Sjogren’s Syndrome (5.3%), gout (5.2%), fibromyalgia (3.8%) and Systemic sclerosis (3.6%). Among the ethnic groups, RA was most prevalent among Kayastha (29.1%), followed by Bengali Muslim (22.1%), Brahmin (11.7%), Manipuri Meitei (8.3%), Boro (4.8%). SLE was more prevalent in the ethnic group Kaibarta (30.6%), followed by Kayastha (22.2%) and Ahom (8.3%). At the same time, SpA was commonly seen among the Kayasthas (33.3%), followed by the Bengali Muslims (29.2%), Brahmins (7.3%) and Manipuri Meitei (4.2%). Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of different rheumatological diseases among the people inhabiting the North-Eastern part of India. Different ethnic groups have a varied predisposition to the conditions. Further research is warranted to establish the concept of regional ethnic diversity and disease epidemiology.

Keywords: Rheumatological diseases; Ethnicity; North-East India.