99-
APPENDIX 1
MEMORANDUM
March 20, 1980-
Το
Members, Select Committee on Aging
From
Committee Staff
Re
Briefing Paper on DMSO and Arthritis
I. ABOUT ARTHRITIS
WHAT IS ARTHRITIS?
Inflammation of a joint, usually accompanied by pain and frequently changes in
the structure of the joint.
ARE THERE DIFFERENT KINDS OF ARTHRITIS?
Yes, there are approximately 100 different ailments under this heading.
WHAT ARE THE MOST WIDESPREAD FORMS OF ARTHRITIS?
Osteoarthritis -- a degenerative joint disease afflicting approximately
16 million Americans
• Rheumatoid arthritis -- an inflammatory ailment afflicting 6.5 million
Americans.
Osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis are the two most prevalent forms.
Other prevalent forms include scleroderma (a hardening of the skin), gout,
ankylosing spondylitis, bursitis and tendonitis.
HOW MANY AMERICANS SUFFER FROM ARTHRITIS?
32 million, including some 20 million older Americans.
WHAT CAUSES ARTHRITIS?
No one knows. Heredity, infections and injuries are the most common explanations.
IS THERE A CURE?
No, but the disease can be controlled, and its effects minimized, through proper
treatment.
