Arthritis in Veterans and the U.S. Military: Data and Care

Author: Ian C. Langtree - Writer/Editor for Disabled World (DW)
Published: 5 Jun 2016 - Updated: 7 Oct 2026
Publication Type: Reports & Proceedings

Table of Contents:
Synopsis - Definition - Overview - FAQs - Insights, Updates - Related Content

Synopsis

This report reviews current federal data on arthritis among U.S. veterans and active duty service members, updating the case first made in a 2016 Arthritis Foundation brief to Congress. Key facts: about 6.8 million veterans, or 35.2 percent, report diagnosed arthritis, and male veterans aged 18 to 44 have roughly twice the rate of men the same age who never served. Who this affects: service members whose joints absorb years of heavy loading and injury, veterans living with the results, and the families and caregivers who support them. Why it matters: osteoarthritis is described by the Defense Health Agency as the second-leading cause of military separation after back pain, and Congress has since funded a dedicated Arthritis Research Program at $10 million in each of fiscal years 2024 and 2026. The information is useful because it draws on original sources - CDC surveillance published in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Department of Defense incidence data, VA benefits statistics and the federal rating schedule - and sets out what has changed for veterans, seniors and people with disabilities who are managing arthritis or seeking VA care and compensation.

At a Glance

• 1 - VA now rates a total knee replacement at 100 percent for four months after surgery, not a full year, followed by a minimum rating of 30 percent.
• 2 - The Army has the highest osteoarthritis diagnosis rate of any service branch, more than double the rate recorded in the Navy from 2016 through 2020.
• 3 - Musculoskeletal conditions make up 38.4 percent of all service-connected disabilities on the VA compensation rolls, the largest share of any body system.
• 4 - Among wounded soldiers found unfit for duty because of arthritis, 94.4 percent of cases traced to combat injury. The arthritis was recognized as disabling an average of 19 months after the wound.

Topic Definition

Service-Related Arthritis

Service-related arthritis is joint disease that begins during military service or is made worse by it, most often osteoarthritis that develops after a joint injury or after years of heavy load carrying, running, kneeling and other repetitive physical stress. It includes post-traumatic osteoarthritis, which can appear within about two years of a fracture, ligament tear or blast wound, and it also covers inflammatory forms such as rheumatoid arthritis when they are diagnosed in service or linked to it. The term matters because it determines eligibility for military medical separation, VA health care and disability compensation, and because it identifies a group of comparatively young people who face decades of pain, reduced mobility and treatment costs.

Overview

Arthritis is one of the most common chronic conditions among people who have served in the United States armed forces. About one in three veterans reports a diagnosis, and osteoarthritis is among the leading medical reasons service members leave the military earlier than they planned. This article reviews what current federal data show about arthritis in veterans and active duty personnel, why military service raises the risk, what the condition costs, and how research funding and care guidance have changed since the Arthritis Foundation raised the issue in a 2016 brief to Congress.

That brief, A Silent Enemy: Arthritis Is Threatening Veterans and the U.S. Military, argued that arthritis was a significant and largely unrecognized consequence of military service. It asked Congress to create a dedicated arthritis research program at the Department of Defense (DoD), funded at no less than $20 million a year [Arthritis Foundation, 2016]. Several of its central points still hold. Others have been overtaken by newer figures, and its main request has since been met in part.

How Common Is Arthritis Among Veterans

The most recent national estimate comes from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which analyzed Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System responses from 2017 through 2021. About 6.8 million veterans, or 35.2 percent, said a health professional had diagnosed them with arthritis [Fallon et al., 2023a]. After adjusting for age, 25.2 percent of male veterans had arthritis compared with 18.3 percent of men who never served, and 30.5 percent of female veterans compared with 25.3 percent of women who never served.

The gap is widest at younger ages. Among men aged 18 to 44, 12.7 percent of veterans had arthritis against 6.2 percent of nonveterans - roughly double. Among women in the same age group the figures were 15.1 percent and 9.5 percent. The difference narrows in middle age and is small after 65 [Fallon et al., 2023a]. The CDC authors caution that survey data of this kind cannot show that military service caused the arthritis, and the survey did not record length of service or military occupation.

For comparison, about 53.2 million U.S. adults, or 21.2 percent, reported diagnosed arthritis in 2019 through 2021 [Fallon et al., 2023b]. The 2016 brief summed up the difference as one in three veterans against one in five civilians. That shorthand still roughly matches the unadjusted numbers, but the age-adjusted figures give the fairer comparison.

Osteoarthritis Among Active Duty Service Members

Arthritis does not wait for retirement. The Armed Forces Health Surveillance Division counted 39,949 new osteoarthritis diagnoses among active component service members from 2016 through 2020, a crude rate of 630.9 per 100,000 person-years [Williams et al., 2021]. The analysis, published in the Medical Surveillance Monthly Report, notes earlier research in which osteoarthritis was diagnosed significantly more often in U.S. active duty personnel than in Canadian civilians of comparable age.

Rates varied sharply across the force:

• Age - incidence climbed steeply with each five-year age band, and service members aged 25 to 29 already had more than 10 times the rate of those under 20.
• Service branch - the Army had the highest rate at 868.3 per 100,000 person-years and the Navy the lowest at 401.5.
• Race and ethnicity - non-Hispanic Black service members had the highest rate at 842.4 per 100,000 person-years and Hispanic service members the lowest at 491.9.
• Sex - men had a higher overall rate than women, 641.2 against 579.0, but the pattern reversed among those aged 45 and older.

The annual rate fell by about a third over the five years, from 713.8 to 476.4 per 100,000 person-years. The authors offered two likely reasons: fewer combat operations and so fewer limb injuries, and people putting off medical visits during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic [Williams et al., 2021]. The second reason means part of the 2020 drop may reflect delayed diagnosis and not less disease.

Understanding Arthritis and Its Main Types

Arthritis is an umbrella term that refers to more than 100 different musculoskeletal diseases. By far the most common type is osteoarthritis (OA), in which cartilage breaks down and the bone and soft tissue of the joint change over time, causing pain, stiffness, swelling and instability. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), gout and psoriatic arthritis are other well-known forms.

An estimated 33.2 million U.S. adults have osteoarthritis, about half of all adults with arthritis, according to a CDC analysis of national examination survey data from 2017 to March 2020 [Foster et al., 2025]. The 2016 brief used an older figure of 27 million. Recognized risk factors include joint injury or repetitive joint stress, obesity, older age, family history and being female, particularly after age 50 [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2024]. The first of those - injury and repetitive stress - is where military service comes in.

How Arthritis Limits Work and Daily Living

CDC describes arthritis as a leading cause of activity limitation, disability and chronic pain in the United States, and 54.8 percent of U.S. adults who have a disability also report diagnosed arthritis [Fallon et al., 2023b]. The 2016 brief listed everyday tasks that many people with arthritis find hard: grasping small objects, climbing a flight of stairs, bending or kneeling, standing or sitting for two hours, walking a quarter of a mile, and lifting or carrying 10 pounds [Arthritis Foundation, 2016].

For someone in uniform, those same limits can decide whether they remain fit to deploy. For a veteran, they affect employment, independence and the ability to stay active enough to protect the rest of the body. For family caregivers, they often mean taking on driving, lifting and household tasks that the veteran once handled.

Why Military Service Raises Osteoarthritis Risk

Military training and service place loads on joints that few civilian jobs match. The Medical Surveillance Monthly Report analysis points to running in formation, carrying heavy loads, wearing body armor for long periods and the physical demands of particular occupations as stresses that make service members a high-risk group [Williams et al., 2021]. The 2016 brief made the same case, describing how marching, field exercises, kneeling, squatting and lifting cause repeated small injuries to cartilage, and how sprains and tears of ligaments and the meniscus early in a career set the stage for arthritis years later [Arthritis Foundation, 2016].

Injury is the strongest single signal. An Army cohort study covering 2008 through 2012, cited in the surveillance report, found that soldiers who had a knee joint injury on active duty were more than five times as likely to be diagnosed with knee osteoarthritis during their military career [Williams et al., 2021].

Combat Injuries and Post-Traumatic Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis that follows a fracture, ligament tear or other joint injury is called post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA). It is the form most closely tied to combat. Extremity injuries made up 54 percent of combat wounds in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. When researchers reviewed Army Physical Evaluation Board records for 464 service members wounded between October 2001 and January 2005, 69 percent of the conditions that made them unfit for duty were orthopedic, and 57 percent of the injured had only orthopedic unfitting conditions [Cross et al., 2011].

A follow-up study of the same group found that arthritis was the most common unfitting condition, with 94.4 percent of cases attributed to combat injury and 5.6 percent to conditions that existed or were documented before the injury. The usual causes were fractures extending into a joint after explosions, open joint wounds from fragments, and gunshot wounds. Arthritis was recognized as disabling an average of 19 months after injury, give or take 10 months [Rivera et al., 2012].

The 2016 brief contrasted that timeline with civilian joint injuries, where arthritis more typically appears after 10 years or more [Arthritis Foundation, 2016]. The speed of onset in young, wounded service members helps explain why the Defense Health Agency in 2026 described osteoarthritis as the second-leading cause of military separation, after back pain [Hammer, 2026].

The Cost of Arthritis for the Nation and for Veterans

The 2016 brief quoted more than $156 billion a year in direct and indirect costs for osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis alone [Arthritis Foundation, 2016]. The most recent CDC estimate for all arthritis is $303.5 billion in 2013 for medical care and lost earnings, and an earlier CDC analysis projected that the number of U.S. adults with arthritis would reach 78.4 million by 2040 [Foster et al., 2025].

Veterans Benefits Administration data show how much of the disability compensation system involves joints and the spine. At the end of fiscal year 2025, 6,338,253 veterans were receiving disability compensation, with estimated annual payments of $174.05 billion. Musculoskeletal conditions were the largest body system category, accounting for 17.8 million of 46.5 million rated disabilities, or 38.4 percent. Limitation of flexion of the knee was the second most common service-connected disability overall, behind only tinnitus, with 2.3 million ratings [Veterans Benefits Administration, 2026].

Those figures cover every musculoskeletal diagnosis, not arthritis alone, and many veterans hold several ratings. They do show the scale of joint and spine problems that follow military service.

VA Health Care Eligibility and Disability Ratings

Veterans with service-connected arthritis generally reach VA health care through one of eight enrollment priority groups. Group 1 includes veterans with service-connected disabilities rated 50 percent or more. Group 2 covers ratings of 30 or 40 percent. Group 3 includes ratings of 10 or 20 percent, former prisoners of war, Purple Heart recipients and veterans discharged for a disability caused or made worse by active duty [U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2024].

Two rules described in the 2016 brief have changed. Combat veterans who served after November 11, 1998 and were discharged on or after January 29, 2003 can receive free VA care for conditions related to their service for up to 10 years after discharge, where the brief described five [U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2022]. And under the current rating schedule, a total knee replacement is rated 100 percent for four months after surgery - not for a full year - then 60 percent if severe painful motion or weakness remains, with a minimum rating of 30 percent [38 C.F.R. Section 4.71a, 2026].

Ratings and eligibility turn on individual service and medical records. Veterans should confirm their own situation with the VA or an accredited veterans service representative.

Prevention and Military Readiness

Preventing joint damage protects both people and readiness. The surveillance report recommends minimizing initial injuries where possible, completing rehabilitation when injuries do happen, building adequate strength around affected joints and maintaining an optimal body mass index. It also calls for research to identify the military equipment and activities that most increase the risk of joint damage [Williams et al., 2021].

The 2016 brief framed prevention as an economic matter as well. When arthritis ends a career early, the military loses its investment in that person's training and must pay to train a replacement, while the VA takes on decades of care and compensation. The younger the service member at onset, the longer those costs run [Arthritis Foundation, 2016].

Why Military Populations Matter for Arthritis Research

The brief argued that some arthritis research can be done only within the military health system. Every recruit has a medical examination on entry, care is delivered and recorded in one system, and blood samples are collected at intervals throughout a career. The DoD Serum Repository, established in 1989, now holds more than 74 million serum specimens and grows by about 2 million a year, well above the 40 million the brief reported [Armed Forces Health Surveillance Division, 2024].

Stored samples let researchers look back at blood drawn years before a person developed rheumatoid arthritis and search for early markers of the disease. That is very hard to do among civilians, who rarely give samples before they have symptoms [Arthritis Foundation, 2016].

Federal Research Funding: From Shared Topic to Dedicated Program

When the brief was written, arthritis had no program of its own within the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP). Arthritis topics competed with dozens of other conditions inside the Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program, where the brief counted 40 arthritis awards worth more than $29 million between fiscal years 2009 and 2014 [Arthritis Foundation, 2016].

That changed in fiscal year 2024, when Congress provided $10 million for a new peer reviewed Arthritis Research Program. The program funded 12 awards from that first appropriation and received a further $10 million for fiscal year 2026. It supports research on all forms of arthritis, including osteoarthritis, post-traumatic arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, and its stated mission covers both the well-being of people affected by arthritis and service member readiness and retention [Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, 2026a].

The fiscal year 2026 appropriation for CDMRP as a whole was $1.27 billion across 34 programs, including $370 million for the Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program and $20 million for the Orthopaedic Research Program [Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, 2026b]. The orthopaedic program, created in fiscal year 2009, received $548.5 million through fiscal year 2024 and has funded 387 awards aimed at recovery from injuries sustained in combat and other service [Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, 2026c]. A dedicated arthritis program now exists, but at half the minimum annual amount the Arthritis Foundation requested.

Veterans, Clinicians and Researchers in the 2016 Brief

The brief gave space to first-person accounts from people living with or working on military-related arthritis [Arthritis Foundation, 2016]. Among the veterans were:

• A Navy submarine electrician who developed shoulder and hand pain while serving, was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis at 27 and removed from submarine duty, and later controlled the disease with biologic medication well enough to complete two half marathons.
• A retired Navy corpsman who served with the Marines in Vietnam in 1969, continued a Navy career of some 30 years, and now lives with post-traumatic osteoarthritis in his knees, back and ankles.
• An Army veteran diagnosed with arthritis and fibromyalgia after noticing changes before separation, who became a volunteer advocate and described exercise as a main tool for flexibility and pain management.
• A former Army Ranger and heavy machine gunner who parachuted with a weapon or ammunition on top of a standard load, broke a collarbone and shattered an ankle in service, and now has osteoarthritis among his service-connected conditions.

Clinicians added their own observations. A retired Navy orthopedic surgeon called premature osteoarthritis the leading medical reason for members being boarded out of the military, and an osteopathic physician reported seeing many young patients with post-traumatic arthritis who did not know they had it.

DoD-funded researchers outlined three lines of work under way at the time: replacing the joint lubricant lubricin soon after a knee injury to protect cartilage, a gene therapy that prompts joint tissue to produce an inhibitor of the inflammatory protein interleukin-1, and laboratory tools that track the immune T cells involved in rheumatoid arthritis from diagnosis through treatment. These were early-stage projects, some still in animal testing, and the descriptions are a snapshot of 2016 and not a report of current results [Arthritis Foundation, 2016].

Current Guidance on Managing Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis cannot at present be reversed, so care concentrates on reducing pain and keeping people moving. CDC advises staying physically active, keeping a healthy weight, protecting joints and learning self-management skills, with physical therapy, pain relievers, supportive devices and, when other treatments have not worked, joint replacement surgery among the medical options [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2024].

The Departments of Veterans Affairs and Defense issued an updated 2026 clinical practice guideline on the non-surgical management of hip and knee osteoarthritis, replacing the 2020 version. It adds 11 new recommendations, emphasizes structured exercise-based therapy and physical therapy, recommends weight management for people with knee osteoarthritis, supports shared decision-making, and advises against starting opioids because of the harms that can occur [Hammer, 2026].

Outside the clinic, CDC recognizes 14 physical activity programs and 9 self-management education programs as suitable for adults with arthritis [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2026]. In its veterans report, CDC recommended wider delivery of such programs through partnerships among public health departments, community organizations, veteran-serving organizations, health care providers and payers [Fallon et al., 2023a]. Veterans, older adults and caregivers who want to begin an exercise or self-management program should ask their own health care provider which options suit their joints and overall health.

Policy Recommendations Then and Now

The brief made three requests: a stand-alone DoD arthritis research program at $20 million a year or more, higher funding for VA medical and prosthetic research, and expansion of the CDC arthritis program from 12 states to all 50 [Arthritis Foundation, 2016]. The first has been met in part, through a program that exists but is funded below the requested level and depends on annual appropriations.

The underlying picture has not eased. Younger veterans carry a markedly heavier arthritis burden than their peers who never served, joint and spine conditions dominate the VA compensation rolls, and battlefield joint injuries can become disabling arthritis within two years. Sustained research, injury prevention during service and ready access to exercise-based care afterward remain the practical priorities for service members, veterans and the people who support them.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can arthritis be presumed service connected if it appears after discharge?

Yes, in some cases. Arthritis is on the VA list of chronic diseases, so if it becomes at least 10 percent disabling within one year of leaving service, and the veteran served 90 days or more during a war period or after December 31, 1946, VA can presume it is service connected unless evidence shows otherwise.

How does the VA rate degenerative arthritis?

Degenerative arthritis confirmed by X-ray is rated on limitation of motion of the affected joint. Where the loss of motion is too slight to be compensable, 10 percent is assigned for each affected major joint or group of minor joints. With no limitation of motion, X-ray evidence in two or more major joints or minor joint groups is rated 10 percent, or 20 percent with occasional incapacitating flare-ups.

What VA disability rating follows a total hip replacement?

A total hip replacement is rated 100 percent for four months after the implant. After that the rating depends on what remains: 90 percent if painful motion or weakness requires crutches, 70 percent for markedly severe residuals, 50 percent for moderately severe residuals, and a minimum of 30 percent.

Which joints are most often affected by osteoarthritis in active duty service members?

The knee is the most common site, accounting for 38.8 percent of new osteoarthritis diagnoses among active component service members from 2016 through 2020. The shoulder is second at 28.4 percent.

What is spondylosis and how common is it in the military?

Spondylosis is degenerative arthritis of the spine. Active component service members received 60,475 new spondylosis diagnoses from 2016 through 2020, a rate of 958.2 per 100,000 person-years, which is higher than the osteoarthritis diagnosis rate over the same period. The Army had the highest rate.

Which military occupations have the highest osteoarthritis rates?

Across all ages, health care and communications or intelligence occupations had the highest diagnosis rates from 2016 through 2020. Among service members aged 30 and older, motor transport and combat-specific occupations were higher. Pilots and air crew had the lowest rates in every age group.

How much physical activity is recommended for adults with arthritis?

CDC points to 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity a week for adults with arthritis. Recognized programs such as Walk With Ease, Tai Chi for Arthritis and EnhanceFitness are designed to help people reach that level safely. Anyone with joint damage or other health conditions should check with a health care provider before starting.

Is arthritis more common in older veterans?

Yes. Among veterans aged 65 and older, 47.2 percent of men and 56.4 percent of women report diagnosed arthritis. The figures for nonveterans of the same age are 42.0 percent and 56.1 percent, so the gap between veterans and nonveterans is much smaller in later life than it is at younger ages.

References:

• Armed Forces Health Surveillance Division. (2024). Department of Defense Serum Repository. Defense Health Agency.
• Arthritis Foundation. (2016). A silent enemy: Arthritis is threatening veterans and the U.S. military [Issue brief].
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2024). Osteoarthritis.
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2026). Physical activity and self-management education programs for arthritis.
• Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs. (2026a). Arthritis Research Program.
• Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs. (2026b). CDMRP announces $1.27 billion, 34 research programs for fiscal year 2026.
• Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs. (2026c). Orthopaedic Research Program.
• Cross, J. D., Ficke, J. R., Hsu, J. R., Masini, B. D., and Wenke, J. C. (2011). Battlefield orthopaedic injuries cause the majority of long-term disabilities. Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, 19(Suppl. 1), S1 - S7.
• Fallon, E. A., Boring, M. A., Foster, A. L., Stowe, E. W., Lites, T. D., and Allen, K. D. (2023a). Arthritis prevalence among veterans - United States, 2017 - 2021. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 72(45), 1209 - 1216.
• Fallon, E. A., Boring, M. A., Foster, A. L., Stowe, E. W., Lites, T. D., Odom, E. L., and Seth, P. (2023b). Prevalence of diagnosed arthritis - United States, 2019 - 2021. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 72(41), 1101 - 1107.
• Foster, A. L., Boring, M. A., Lites, T. D., Croft, J. E., Odom, E. L., and Fallon, E. A. (2025). Distribution of arthritis subtypes among adults with arthritis in the United States, 2017 - March 2020. Preventing Chronic Disease, 22, Article 240393.
• Hammer, R. (2026, July 24). Recommendations for hip and knee osteoarthritis. Defense Health Agency.
• Rivera, J. C., Wenke, J. C., Buckwalter, J. A., Ficke, J. R., and Johnson, A. E. (2012). Posttraumatic osteoarthritis caused by battlefield injuries: The primary source of disability in warriors. Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, 20(Suppl. 1), S64 - S69.
• Schedule of ratings - musculoskeletal system, 38 C.F.R. Section 4.71a (2026).
• U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (2022). Active-duty service members and VA health care.
• U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (2024). VA priority groups.
• Veterans Benefits Administration. (2026). Annual benefits report, fiscal year 2025: Compensation. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
• Williams, V. F., Ying, S., and Stahlman, S. (2021). Update: Osteoarthritis and spondylosis, active component, U.S. Armed Forces, 2016 - 2020. Medical Surveillance Monthly Report, 28(12), 2 - 13.

Insights, Analysis, and Developments

Editorial Note: Arthritis rarely makes headlines the way other service-related conditions do, yet the numbers behind it are hard to set aside. The national bill for arthritis was last estimated at $303.5 billion a year, and CDC projects 78.4 million American adults will have the condition by 2040. What stands out a decade after the Arthritis Foundation's brief is how much of the response now rests on things that work without a prescription: the 2026 VA and DoD guideline puts structured exercise and weight management first and advises against starting opioids, and CDC recognizes 23 community programs built on the same approach. The military's store of more than 74 million serum specimens gives researchers a rare chance to study rheumatoid arthritis before symptoms begin. For veterans, older adults and caregivers, the practical message is that joint damage from service is common, often compensable, and more manageable with early, active care than many people assume.

Author Credentials: Ian is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Disabled World, a leading resource for news and information on disability issues. With a global perspective shaped by years of travel and lived experience, Ian is a committed proponent of the Social Model of Disability, a transformative framework developed by disabled activists in the 1970s that emphasizes dismantling societal barriers rather than focusing solely on individual impairments. His work reflects a deep commitment to disability rights, accessibility, and social inclusion. To learn more about Ian's background, expertise, and accomplishments, visit his full biography.

Attribution/Source(s): This quality-reviewed publication was selected for publishing by the editors of Disabled World (DW) due to its relevance to the disability community. Originally authored by Disabled World and published on 5 Jun 2016, this content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity.