Incidence and Prevalence of Septic Arthritis in Thailand: A Database from the Ministry of Public Health.

Background: A better understanding of the epidemiological profile of septic arthritis or pyogenic arthritis in Thais could improve care and provide information for better infectious control. We aimed to determine the incidence and prevalence of septic arthritis in Thailand between 2017 and 2020.

Methods: A descriptive epidemiological study was performed using demographic data from patients over 18 years of age having a primary diagnosis of M00 pyogenic arthritis between 2017 and 2020. Data were sourced from the Information and Communication Technology Center, Ministry of Public Health database. The incidence and prevalence of septic arthritis were calculated, and their respective 95% confidence interval (CI).

Results: The number of patients with septic arthritis in 2017 was 26,878 from a total Thai population of 65,204,797. The prevalence of septic arthritis in 2017 was 41.2 per 100,000 (95% CI 40.7-41.7). The prevalence of septic arthritis among women was slightly higher than among men (42.2 vs 40.2 per 100,000). The incidence of septic arthritis slightly increased from 2018 to 2019 but was stable in 2020 (22.6, 23.3, and 23.1 per 100,000 person-years, respectively). The incidence was highest in the southern region between 2018 and 2019 but highest in the northeast in 2020. The peak was in the elderly population 60 and older (56.4, 59.5, and 57.3 per 100,000 person-years in 2018, 2019, and 2020, respectively). The incidence increased with age and the maximum rate was in those ≥ 70 years (70.2 per 100,000 person-years in 2019).

Conclusion: Septic arthritis commonly presents in the elderly and is comparable between men and women. The disease was found mainly in the northeastern and southern regions. The incidence remained stable during the study period.