Arthritis

21 Interesting Arthritis Statistics

21 Interesting Facts and Statistics About Arthritis

Some of these will amaze you, some will simply surprise you and some might not do anything . . .

  1. Arthritis is used to describe in excess of 100 different conditions, mostly affecting the joints but also other parts of the body.
  2. Arthritis is the most common cause of disability in the United States.
  3. It is estimated that a massive 46 million adults in the US have some sort of arthritis . . . that’s only the one’s which have been to the doctors!
  4. 21% of adults have arthritis, that’s more than 1 in 5 . . . coming to a joint near you and soon!
  5. It’s estimated that the number of arthritis sufferers in the US will have increased to around 67 million by 2030, and that’s just the adults.
  6. 66% (around two out of three - for those who didn’t listen in math class) who suffer from arthritis haven’t even reached the age of 65 years yet.
  7. Arthritic and rheumatic conditions cost a whopping $128 billion to the economy of the US in 2003.
  8. In 2002, more than half of the people over 75 years of age were suffering with some form of arthritis.
  9. Around 80 per cent of adults either have, or know someone else who has arthritis . . . like I said, coming to a joint near you soon!
  10. Women are more likely to suffer from arthritis than men – 28.3% to 18.2%.
  11. Arthritis puts around 744,000 people in hospital each year.
  12. Arthritis is directly responsible for the deaths of around 9,350 deaths each year.
  13. 19 million people have limited activity because of arthritis.
  14. More people suffer from active limitations due to arthritis than because of cancer, diabetes or even heart disease.
  15. Almost 294,000 children under the age of 18 years have juvenile arthritis.
  16. More than half of adults who have diabetes or heart disease also have arthritis.
  17. The most common type of arthritis is osteoarthritis which affects almost 27 million Americans, predominantly over the age of 45 years.
  18. Rheumatoid Arthritis affects around 1.3 million people in the United States, of which women are 2.5 times more prevalent.
  19. Lupus affects almost 240,000 Americans, and women are eight to ten times more likely to suffer.
  20. Gout affects an estimated 3 million Americans, and just for once, this type of arthritis is more prevalent in men than in women.
  21. Arthritis can affect all ethnic groups and races – white, black, Hispanic, Native Americans, Asian and Pacific Islanders . . . it don’t seem to matter who you are or where you’re from!