Examining the Association Between Traditional and Mainstream Medicine and the Prevalence of Arthritis in the Urban Indigenous Population Living in Toronto

Background: In the Indigenous community, the prevalence of arthritis is 1.3 to 1.6 times higher than their non-Indigenous counterparts. Moreover, minimal population health information on urban Indigenous peoples is available. Objective: To explore the relationship between the use of traditional and mainstream medicine and the prevalence of arthritis in the Indigenous population living in Toronto. Methods: The Our Health Counts Toronto study surveyed 918 self-identified Indigenous adults using Respondent-Driven Sampling. Survey logistic regression and generalized linear mixed models were used to investigate the multivariable relationships between medication use and arthritis, including adjustments for known confounders. Results: Compared to using neither types of medicine, use of both mainstream and traditional medicines (OR: 8.69, 95% CI: 4.06-18.59), mainstream medicine use only (6.08 2.41-15.36) and traditional medicine use only (3.86 2.63-5.67) are associated with arthritis. Conclusion: Indigenous community members with arthritis are likely to use both traditional and mainstream medicine to manage this condition.