Table 2 Symptom-based questions and the related algorithm to ascertain prevalent arthritis, developed as part of the World Health Organization SAGE Wave 1 [23]

1

During the last 12 months, have you experienced pain, aching, stiffness or swelling in or around the joints (like arms, hands, legs or feet) which were not related to an injury and lasted for more than a month?

2

During the last 12 months, have your experienced stiffness in the joint in the morning after getting up from bed, or after a long rest of the joint without movement?

3

Did this stiffness last for more than 30 min?

4

Did this stiffness go away after exercise or movement in the joint?

Algorithm

If a participant responded with ‘yes’ to questions 1 and/or 2, and responded with ‘yes’ to question 3 and ‘no’ to question 4, then the participant was categorised as having arthritis