Fast Facts about Arthritis   

• More than 46 Million Americans or one in five adults have some form of doctor diagnosed arthritis.
  
  
• Arthritis affects people in all age groups including nearly 300,000 children in the U.S.

• More than half of those affected by arthritis are under the age of 65.

• Arthritis is the most common cause of disability and one of the most prevalent chronic health problems in the U.S.

• Arthritis results in 39 million physician visits and more than a half million hospitalizations.

• Arthritis costs the US economy nearly $128 billion annually.

• Arthritis refers to more than 100 different diseases that affect areas in or around the joints.

• In 2008, the Arthritis Foundation Awarded over $2.3 million in Research Grants to Massachusetts Hospitals.