• Is one of the most common disease conditions affecting humans.
• Afflicts one in seven people, and one in every three families.
• Affects in some form most people over 60 years of age.
• Causes painful debilitation for over 35 million Americans.

PROGRESS IN MEDICAL RESEARCH

Arthritis means inflammation of the joint. However the term is used widely to describe many different conditions that cause aching and pain in joints and connective tissues throughout the body. While arthritis rarely poses a threat to life, it often causes disability. The cause of arthritis is not known but proper treatments, therapies, and medications are increasingly effective. There are over 100 forms of arthritis. The two most common are osteoarthritis - usually associated with advanced age and rheumatoid arthritis.

Some of the more common types of arthritis are:

• Rheumatoid Arthritis: Often a severe, painful, even disabling disease which attacks women three times more frequently than men.
• Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis: Arthritis and other forms of rheumatic disease which occur in children under the age of 18.
• Osteoarthritis: A degenerative arthritis and the most common form; a slowly progressive disease, it can cause extreme pain and disability with age.
• Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: Affecting the joints and vital organs; afflicting women more than men, and black women more than white.
• Gout: Probably the most painful of the arthritic diseases and the most satisfactorily treated; caused by a defect in body chemistry leading to heightened uric acid levels and precipitation of urate crystals in joints.
• Ankylosing Spondylitis: A disease of the spine primarily afflicting young men. The spine may become rigid and severe disability is not uncommon.

How has animal research helped people with arthritis?

Animal research on arthritis and related diseases began 50 years ago when scientists began studying the effects of bone deterioration in the joints of dogs. Like humans, dogs have a natural tendency to develop arthritis in old age. An animal the size of a dog has also been very important for bone and joint scientists in their development of knee and hip replacements. Research with rodents has provided a great deal of information about, and treatments for, rheumatoid arthritis.

Is animal research on arthritis still necessary?

Animal research continues to play a key role in the understanding and treating of arthritic diseases. At the University of Michigan Medical Center researchers are using mice to provide fundamental information into the causes of arthritis, and for testing experi-mental drugs. Along with Wayne State University, they are using mice to produce antibodies as a means to improve our knowledge of arthritic disease. Guinea pigs and rabbits are used to test procedures on the joints for osteoarthritis. Research with dogs continues to help develop improved joint replacements. At Michigan State University investigators are using dogs in surgical replacement techniques so that other dogs may benefit from improved treatment.

What's ahead for research on arthritis?

There remains many unanswered questions about the mechanisms of arthritic diseases and how to improve treatment. The future of research on arthritis hinges on the continued use of animals for the study of immune system disorders, which appear to be at the root of arthritis and related diseases.

MISMR members strongly support humane animal study in research. We hope that likeminded citizens will join us in working for rational public policy that assures the continued appropriate use of animals in the course of good science.