The Arthritis Prognosis
Arthritis is more than the mere onset of aches and pains in old age. Data from the years 1979 to 1998 showed that more than 145,000 people died with an underlying cause of arthritis and other rheumatic conditions. Deaths attributable to arthritis rose during that period as well, with 12 percent of deaths among people aged 15 to 44.
Most of the arthritis-related deaths in that two-decade period of measurement came from three sources – diffuse connective tissue diseases killed 34 percent of the afflicted, mostly from systemic lupus erythematosus and systemic sclerosis. Some 23 percent died from other rheumatic conditions, mostly vasculitis; while 22 percent succumbed because of conditions wrought by rheumatoid arthritis. Beyond the people who died directly from the disease, another 585,000 had arthritis listed as an associated cause.
While there is no cure as yet for arthritis, research continues on stem cells and genes to determine what causes the onset of arthritis. In the meantime, limiting risk factors is a way to help the body avoid the disease.