ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--More than 27 million Americans experience joint deterioration, also known as osteoarthritis; and that number is expected to grow to 40 million Americans by the year 2020. In recognition of Arthritis Month, Sharecare, the online health and wellness engagement platform founded by Dr. Mehmet Oz and WebMD founder Jeff Arnold, today announced its Top 10 Social HealthMakers on Osteoarthritis, a list of the most influential experts leading online conversations about the most common form of arthritis.
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Carol Eustice: Diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis at age 19, Eustice is About.com’s expert on arthritis and has authored two books on the subject: The Everything Health Guide to Arthritis and Natural Arthritis Treatment. |
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Frederick Matsen, MD: With more than 40 years of experience in shoulder arthritis and a tenured professor in the department of orthopedics and sports medicine at University of Washington, Dr. Matsen writes the blog Shoulder Arthritis to provide patients with the latest evidence-based knowledge on how to care for their conditions. |
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Jonathan Cluett, MD: As an orthopedic surgeon and About.com’s expert on orthopedics, Dr. Cluett helps readers understand their orthopedic conditions and learn how to best manage symptoms. |
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Howard Luks, MD: An orthopedic surgeon and an associate professor of orthopedic surgery at New York Medical College, Dr. Luks uses his online presence to support the spread of reputable, evidence-based and actionable information to patients and consumers. |
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Dorothy Foltz-Gray: A freelance health writer and former editor of medical books and lifestyle magazines, Foltz-Gray is the author of Alternative Treatments for Arthritis: An A to Z Guide, The Arthritis Foundation’s Guide to Good Living with RA and Make Pain Disappear. |
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Brett Sears: With more than 10 years of experience in orthopedic and hospital based physical therapy, Sears is About.com’s expert on physical therapy and writes to provide readers with knowledge on physical therapy and how to maintain an active, healthy lifestyle. |
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Andrew Weil, MD: Internationally recognized for his leadership in integrative medicine and views on healthy aging, Dr. Weil writes for The Huffington Post, hosts a daily health tips blog, and is the author of many books, including 8 Weeks to Optimum Health and True Food: Seasonal, Sustainable, Simple and Pure. |
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David Geier, MD: An orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist, Dr. Geier writes about sports medicine and injury treatment and prevention on his personal blog, and serves as a member of the editorial board for the Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine. |
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Robert LaPrade, MD: A complex orthopedic knee surgeon at the Steadman Clinic, known worldwide for offering innovative treatments in sports medicine, Dr. LaPrade specializes in treating intricate knee injuries and previously failed surgeries. |
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Thomas Clanton, MD: An orthopedic surgeon and the director of foot and ankle sports medicine at the Steadman Clinic, Dr. Clanton is a pioneer in ankle replacement surgery and has served as lead physician for several national and collegiate sports teams. |
For more expert tips and tools for managing osteoarthritis, go to https://www.sharecare.com/health/osteoarthritis.
Methodology: Sharecare Social HealthMakers are among the most influential people in health and wellness on the web, driving conversations on the leading edge of many health topics. They address a wide range of issues within specific topic areas while demonstrating consistent impact across multiple interactive channels—such as Twitter, Facebook, videos and blogs. This impact is measured through a proprietary algorithm based on more than 100 individual metrics developed and powered by WCG, the leading digital marketing and communications agency, quantifying topic relevance, syndication, presence and reach. Earlier Sharecare lists have identified Social HealthMakers in multiple sclerosis, men’s health, fitness, mental health, diabetes, nutrition and more.
About Sharecare
Sharecare is a health and wellness engagement platform that helps people to live healthier lives by connecting them to personalized resources including local healthcare providers, high-quality information from experts, interactive programs and clinical decision support tools, including its iOS-exclusive app AskMD. The power behind Sharecare is a unique, social Q&A format that provides the collective wisdom of America’s top experts—greatly simplifying the search for health information—and its scientifically-based health risk assessment, the RealAge® Test, taken by more than 33 million people and validated in peer-reviewed journal PLOS ONE as a more accurate predictor of mortality than calendar age and the Framingham Risk Score. Created by Jeff Arnold and Dr. Mehmet Oz in partnership with Harpo Productions, Sony Pictures Television and Discovery Communications, Sharecare allows people to ask, learn and act upon questions of health and wellness, creating an active community where knowledge is shared and put into practice—simply said, sharing care. Launched in 2010, Sharecare is based in Atlanta.
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About WCG
Founded and led by chairman and CEO Jim Weiss, WCG is focused on integrated business solutions in the areas of innovation, change and growth for the world’s leading companies and brands. WCG serves clients through a network of offices in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Austin, Los Angeles and London. For more than a decade, WCG’s seasoned professionals have specialized in providing analytics, content, engagement and strategy to a diverse set of clients across the consumer, technology, healthcare and pharmaceutical industries.
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