Next Tuesday (16 October), there will be a free SciBarHealth: Arthritis, Bones & Joints event from 6.30pm for a 7pm start at the Revolution Bar and Restaurant on Downing Street hosted by Cambridge British Science Association and Cambridge University Health Partners.
The event will involve two talks from experts in their fields:
Dr Jagtar Singh Nijjar, a NIHR Clinical lecturer and honorary rheumatology registrar working at the University of Cambridge and Addenbrooke's Hospital will be talking about 'Rheum with a view: Through the looking glass into rare joint diseases'. He will discuss how a patient inspired his latest research, how the support of the NIHR BioResource has transformed this into a national study and importantly, that by researching rare conditions, we inevitably glean insights into more common diseases.
Professor Andrew McCaskie is an orthopaedic surgeon at Addenbrooke’s Hospital with an interest in lower limb surgery and his talk is entitled 'Movement Matters'. He is the Director of the Arthritis Research UK Tissue Engineering Centre, working with other academics across the UK. This research aims to develop innovative solutions, particularly regenerative, to benefit patients with musculoskeletal disease, such as Osteoarthritis. Andrew will consider the key advances in orthopaedic surgery and research that aim to repair or regenerate bone and joint tissues.
The biggest cause of disability in the UK is down to problems with bones and joints can develop in people of all ages.
Malcolm Lowe-Lauri, Executive Director at Cambridge University Health Partners, said: “Bone and joint diseases can affect people of all ages and make simple daily activities such as walking, climbing stairs or just getting out of a chair incredibly difficult. This can be debilitating and mentally taxing as once fit and healthy people struggle to perform tasks which were once easy. The good news is the work by experts such as Dr Nijjar and Professor McCaskie is helping people to live independent and active lives so it should be a fascinating and informative set of talks next week at SciBarHealth.”
Vasee Vinayagamoorthy, Co-chair of Cambridge British Science Association, said: "We have all heard about joint complaints from close friends and family. While most of us are free of such problems in the early stages of our lives, most of us do develop bone and joint troubles at some point in our lives, and have to live with it. Thanks to great cutting-edge research being done by Cambridge scientists and academics, we can look forward to improvement in the quality of life for any of us who are concerned about joint and bone health. We are lucky to have two great speakers come and share their advances with us during the Bone and Joint Action Week."