Join the Osteoarthritis Metaphor Competition 2025

Osteoarthritis is often referred to using terms like ‘wear and tear’, ‘bone on bone’, and ‘degeneration’. Not only are some of these terms incorrect, they also wrongly give the impression that movement can cause or worsen the disease. The truth is that exercise is one of the most important treatments for people with osteoarthritis.

An accurate and appealing metaphor for osteoarthritis could help to explain the disease better and thus help patients to explore appropriate treatment options before committing to joint (replacement) surgery. To this end, guest editors of the Osteoarthritis & Cartilage special issue ‘OA clinical trials - meeting challenges with solutions’, Franziska Saxer and Jos Runhaar have launched the Osteoarthritis Metaphor Competition 2025.

A panel of experts (including patients with lived-experience, advocacy groups, clinicians, and researchers) will evaluate all submissions. The winning submission will be featured in the Osteoarthritis & Cartilage Special Issue ‘OA clinical trials - meeting challenges with solutions’ and will be visually represented in a free-to-share illustration.

Please submit your metaphor through this form by July 1st 2025.