Both male and female veterans were more likely to have arthritis than were nonveterans, according to a study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
For male veterans, the age-standardized arthritis rate for 2011-2013 was 25%, while for male nonveterans, the rate was 19.5%. Both female veterans and nonveterans had noticeably higher arthritis incidence than did the respective male group: 31.3% for veterans and 26.1% for nonveterans, the CDC found (MMWR 2014;63:999-1003).
Although arthritis rates were higher overall in middle-aged and older people, arthritis rates were consistently higher in younger veterans aged 18-44 years – 11.6% for males and 17.3% for females – compared with 6.9% in male nonveterans and 9.8% in female nonveterans. This suggests “that arthritis and its effects need to be addressed among male and female veterans of all ages,” the CDC researchers said.
Traumatic and overuse injuries were found to be common among active-duty military personnel in another study, the investigators noted, while pointing out that musculoskeletal injuries are a major risk factor for osteoarthritis, which “represents the largest portion of arthritis cases” among veterans.
The study used data collected by the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.
