3)    Sex – More women than men get arthritis or at least more identify the aches and pains as arthritis. Certain subsets of arthritis affect certain sexes more than others. For example, women get rheumatic arthritis more often, while men are more susceptible to gout.

4)    Obesity – Weight is a big factor for arthritis development because general health decline is often accompanied by the onset of other opportunistic diseases. The stress on joints from added weight can cause deterioration in the knees, spine and hips, leading to arthritis.  

5)    A previous joint injury – If you have injured a joint in an accident or while playing a sport, you are statistically more likely to develop arthritis in that joint.

6)    Inactive Lifestyle – Don’t exercise much? There’s a large increase in the likelihood that arthritis will develop. On an age-adjusted basis, 24 percent of sedentary people develop arthritis versus more than 18 percent of active adults. About 10 percent of United States adults age 18 or older have arthritis to a degree that it limits their activities.

Getting an Arthritis Diagnosis

A doctor will perform a complete physical exam, including taking a family history, X-rays and bloodwork. But only a few diseases – like gout -- can be identified as arthritis with any certainty.

However, once other causes of body aches and pains have been ruled out, doctors will usually recommend treating the condition with pain medication, weight loss and greater levels of physical activity, tolerance permitting. Some cases of rheumatoid arthritis are treated with anti-inflammatory medications (including nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and corticosteroids), disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDS) and a new class of drugs known as biologics.