There are 100s of different sub-types of arthritis, with three types being the most common.
Osteoarthritis (OA): The protective cartilage inside the joint breaks down making movement difficult and painful. Pain can also come from parts of the joint other than the cartilage, such as bone, synovium and the ligaments.
Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA): A chronic inflammatory disorder that can damage a wide variety of body systems such as your joints and other systems in the body including skin, eyes, lungs, heart and blood vessels.
Unlike osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis affects the lining of the joints called the synovium, causing painful swelling that can lead to bone erosion and joint deformity.
Psoriatic Arthritis (PsA): An auto-immune inflammatory disease in the immune system attacks the body, causing inflammation and pain. Psoriatic Arthritis affects the joints and the connective tissue where the tendons or ligaments attach to the bone causing enthesitis. It also affects the skin causing Psoriasis.
Osteoarthritis (OA) effects 3.9 million Australians, costing the economy $24.9 billion. $9.4billion is lost due to those affected not being able to work, with a little over 80,000 Australians being unable to work due to arthritis.
Regions of the body that are commonly effected by Osteoarthritis are the lower back, neck, knee, hip and hand.
3 out of 4 Australians with arthritis will report at least one other chronic health condition, with 44% having cardiovascular disease, 23% having some form of mental health issue, 14% having asthma and 12% having diabetes.