1

Arthritis Facts and Statistics

An Overview
The term arthritis (arthro meaning joint, itis meaning inflammation) is used to
refer to more than 100 related conditions.
4.5 million, or one in six, Canadians aged 15 years and older report having arthritis.
By 2031, approximately seven million Canadians (one in five) are expected to have
arthritis.
1

Arthritis can strike anyone at anytime, regardless of age, physical condition or ethnic
background.
Two-thirds of those affected with arthritis are women.
2

Among all causes of disability in Canada, arthritis ranks first among women and
second among men.
3

The symptoms of arthritis vary, but it commonly results in joint pain and swelling
that impacts daily activities. Over two-thirds of people with arthritis report activity
limitations.
4

Generally, there are two types of arthritis: rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and related
diseases, which are immune-mediated systemic inflammatory joint diseases, and
osteoarthritis (OA), which is a degenerative joint disease whose onset is mediated by
previous joint injury or other factors. Evidence shows ongoing inflammation and
cartilage destruction in both types of arthritis, although it is more pronounced in RA
and related immune-mediated joint diseases.
5

Inflammatory arthritis is an autoimmune disorder where an individuals own
antibodies attack tissue in the lining of the joints and, sometimes, in other internal
organs, causing inflammation, swelling and pain. Inflammatory joint diseases include
rheumatoid arthritis (RA), juvenile arthritis (JA), ankylosing spondylitis (AS),
psoriatic arthritis (PsA), gout and others.
It is estimated that one million Canadians live with inflammatory types of arthritis.
6


1
Public Health Agency of Canada, Life with Arthritis in Canada: A Personal and Public Health Challenge
(Ottawa: Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, 2010), 12.
2
Ibid.
3
Ibid., 59.
4
Ibid., 58.
5
http://www.scielosp.org/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0042-
96862003000900014&lng=en&nrm=iso (accessed January 16, 2012)
6
Life with Arthritis in Canada, 17.

2
Osteoarthritis (OA) occurs when cartilage, the material covering and protecting the
ends of bones, begins to wear away. The eventual result is pain, stiffness, swelling
and bone-on-bone movement in the affected joint.
More than 10 per cent of Canadian adults are affected by OA, which is the most
prevalent type of arthritis.
7

Joint damage caused by OA accounts for more than 80 per cent of hip replacement
surgery and over 90 per cent of knee replacements in Canada.
8




The impact of arthritis
Nearly three of every five people with arthritis are of working age (under 65).
9

A recent report estimates that arthritis may cost the Canadian economy more than $33
billion annually.
10

Over a quarter of men and women with arthritis aged between 25 and 44 years are not
in the labour force because of their disease.
11

While many men and women with arthritis work, 44 per cent report working with job
limitations and 33 per cent require job modifications.
12

Its expected that people aged 55 years and older will account for the greatest increase
of arthritis cases in the future; a high proportion of these people may face reduced
participation in the labour force.
13

Its projected that, within 30 years, there will be a new diagnosis of OA every 60
seconds, resulting in almost 30 per cent of the employed labour force having
difficulty working due to OA.
14

Over six per cent of total hospitalizations in Canada are associated with arthritis.
15

Approximately 14 per cent of Canadians over the age of 15 make at least one visit to
a physician for a reason owing to arthritis; in 2005-06, arthritis accounted for about
8.5 million such visits in Canada.
16

More Canadians have died from arthritis and related conditions than from melanoma,
asthma or HIV/AIDS.
17
Almost 1,000 Canadians died from arthritis in 2005. Women
are about three times as likely as men to die from arthritis.
18





7
Ibid., 17.
8
Ibid., 108.
9
Ibid., 12.
10
Arthritis Alliance of Canada, The Impact of Arthritis in Canada: Today and Over the Next 30 Years (Fall
2011), 32, 40.
11
Life with Arthritis in Canada, 64.
12
Ibid., 64.
13
Ibid., 84.
14
The Impact of Arthritis in Canada, 12.
15
Life with Arthritis in Canada, 13.
16
Ibid., 13.
17
Health Canada, Arthritis in Canada: An Ongoing Challenge (Ottawa: Health Canada, 2003), vii.
18
Life with Arthritis in Canada, 80.
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Managing arthritis
There is no cure for arthritis, but the great majority of people with it can lead active
lives and avoid permanent joint damage if the disease is diagnosed early and an
appropriate treatment plan is begun.
Self-management is a vital part of any treatment plan. This includes healthy eating,
physical activity, rest and joint-protection techniques.
Studies suggest that people with arthritis taking part in self-management programs
feel more confident in their ability to manage and control their symptoms, less
anxious about their disease and may visit the doctor less frequently.
19

Maintaining a healthy body weight through a combination of a balanced diet and
regular activity is a particularly important part of managing arthritis. Less weight
means less pressure on the joints. A long-term study on the effects of weight loss on
knee OA in overweight and obese patients suggests that losing a pound results in a
four-pound reduction in knee-joint load for each step.
20

In some cases, a healthy body weight can help prevent the onset of the disease, as
obesity is a risk factor for osteoarthritis (OA).
21
Those who are obese are 2.5 to 3
times more likely to develop knee OA and twice more likely to develop hip OA
compared to those who are not.
22























19
Health Foundation, Evidence: Helping People Help Themselves (London: Health Foundation, 2011), 4.
20
Stephen P. Messier et al., Weight Loss Reduces Knee-Joint Loads in Overweight and Obese Older
Adults With Knee Osteoarthritis, Arthritis & Rheumatism Vol. 52, No. 7 (July 2005): 20262032.
21
Life with Arthritis in Canada, 13.
22
Ibid., 38.
4



Juvenile arthritis
Juvenile arthritis (JA) is one of the more common disorders resulting in chronic
disability in children and adolescents in Canada.
23
JA can be defined as continuous
inflammation (pain, stiffness and swelling) of one or more joints lasting at least six
weeks for which no other cause can be found.
Approximately 61,500 Canadian children and youth have arthritis.
o In 2007-8, 15,476 Canadians aged 15-19 and 40,301Canadians aged 20-24
were reported as living with JA.
24

o Estimates place the number of children 0-14 living with arthritis at 1/1000 or
approximately 5,700.
During two years of surveillance in Canada, 846 cases of newly diagnosed JA were
confirmed in children up to 16 years, suggesting that 4.3 of every 100,000 children
are diagnosed with JA each year.
25

The onset of JA may follow an event that turns on the immune system, causing it to
be overactive by perhaps responding inappropriately to an infection or mistakenly
identifying something as an infection, thereby causing continuous inflammation.
JA differs from arthritis that affects adults. The unique features associated with JA
are:
o irregular growth problems that cause discomfort;
o an increased likelihood for chronic uveitis, which is inflammation of the eye
causing reduced vision; and
o painful flare-ups and disease remission that can come and go without warning.
While there is no cure for JA, an effective treatment plan medication, physiotherapy,
physical activity and rest controls pain and helps to prevent permanent joint damage.
With the guidance of a health-care team and the support of family members, a child
with arthritis can lead an active and productive life.





23
Canadian Paediatric Society, Canadian Paediatric Surveillance Program: 2009 Results (Ottawa: Public
Health Agency of Canada, 2010), 26.
24
Life with Arthritis in Canada, 20.
25
Canadian Paediatric Surveillance Program: 2009 Results, 28.