Statistics

The following statistics are from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the Arthritis Foundation:

• Nearly 70 million people in the United States have some form of arthritis or chronic joint symptoms. 

• Rheumatic diseases are the leading cause of disability among persons age 65 and older.

• Approximately 20.7 million adults in the United States have the most common form of arthritis, osteoarthritis, also called degenerative joint disease. Most persons over the age of 65 are affected with osteoarthritis in at least one joint, making this condition a leading cause of disability in the United States.

• Rheumatoid arthritis, the most crippling form of arthritis, affects approximately 2.1 million Americans. Further, the average onset for rheumatoid arthritis is between the ages of 20 and 45 years old.

• Lupus affects women about eight to 10 times as often as men.

• Fibromyalgia affects about 2 percent of the U.S. population.
  

For more information.

• About Arthritis and Other Rheumatic Diseases
  • Anatomy of a Joint
  • Diagnosing Arthritis and Other Rheumatic Diseases
• Common Types of Arthritis and Other Rheumatic Diseases
  • Ankylosing Spondylitis
  • Bursitis
  • Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Gout
  • Infectious Arthritis
  • Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis
  • Low Back Pain
  • Lyme Disease
  • Osteoarthritis
  • Psoriatic Arthritis
  • Raynaud's Phenomenon
  • Reactive Arthritis (Reiter's Syndrome)
  • Rheumatoid Arthritis
  • Scleroderma
  • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (Lupus)
  • Tendonitis
• Treatment for Arthritis and Other Rheumatic Diseases
• Living With a Rheumatic Disease
• Statistics
• Online Resources
• Glossary