2 June 2026
Arthritis NZ For media release
New study highlights significant impacts of arthritis on New Zealanders
A major study by Arthritis NZ Mateponapona Aotearoa has highlighted the far-reaching impacts of the many types of arthritis on New Zealanders, including their mental health, wellbeing and financial stability.
More than 1560 people participated in the Arthritis Confidence Index: Voices of the Community (ACI) survey in October and November 2025.
Key findings included that most people with arthritis regard their condition as a disability, experience poorer health than the general population and don’t feel their situation will improve in the near future.
Dr Richard Griffiths, Research Manager for Arthritis NZ, said the ACI was one of the largest surveys of its kind undertaken by a health charity in New Zealand.
“Over 850,000 people in New Zealand have arthritis. We wanted to do something that would further help us understand the challenges people with arthritis face and what is going well with their arthritis through the year and over time.
“The response has been incredible. For the first ACI survey of the people on our database in 2024 1,119 people responded. In 2025 1,563 took part.”
Griffiths said wellbeing, mental health and disability were front and centre in the findings.
“There is a stereotype that arthritis is something that happens to older people but, while it is prevalent in seniors, there are a lot of people of working age with arthritis – 3% of participants were 18 to 34, 17% 35 to 54, 52% 55 to 74 and 28% 75 or older.
“A significant majority – 73% – of people who completed our survey consider their arthritis is a disability. It can affect walking and other physical activities and many people have difficulty with everyday tasks such as personal care and household chores.”
Many participants (69%) have osteoarthritis, 24% have rheumatoid arthritis, 15% axial spondylitis and 14% fibromyalgia. The rest have other forms of arthritis including gout, lupus/SLE and juvenile idiopathic arthritis. Many have more than one form.
Almost half (49%) reported experiencing moderate pain levels in a typical week; 21% experienced mild pain; 20% severe pain and 5% very severe pain.
Over half (58%) felt their mental health and general wellbeing had been adversely affected by arthritis, with around a quarter also having a mental health diagnosis (23%).
Twelve percent had taken sick leave in the previous 12 months due to their condition and 13% reported working when they should have taken sick leave.
About a quarter could not exercise or had severe problems exercising (26%) and 53% felt their personal health was poor or only fair. Only 29% said they had good health, 15% very good and 2% excellent.
“That is very interesting because the results are very different to the annual New Zealand Health Survey of the general population,” says Griffiths.
“In 2024/25, 86.6% of adults reported they were in good, very good or excellent health. So, this indicates a significant discrepancy in the number of people with arthritis who are not feeling so good about personal wellbeing or health.”
In terms of financial impacts, 16% reported loss of earnings through being unable to work, 22% had borrowed money from family or friends and 21% reported financial anxiety or stress arising from their condition.
Many have other long-term health conditions, with almost a third living with heart disease (32%).
Seventy percent said they were dissatisfied with Government management of the health sector, an eight percent increase from when the 2024 ACI study was undertaken.
About a third of respondents however did not think life for people with arthritis would improve over the coming year (32%).
When asked the statement, “I have confidence that life will be better for people living with arthritis in New Zealand one year from now”, 16% said they strongly disagreed and 16% disagreed.
Most (57%) felt their GP understood their condition and needs. However, there was a lower level of satisfaction from those with fibromyalgia or lupus and people who were unable to work due to arthritis.
While a majority (63%) were able to get an appointment with their GP within a month, 13% reported it had taken one to two months, a five percent increase on 2024.
Wait times for a specialist appointment on the other hand were notably longer, ranging from one to five or six months, with some still waiting.
Surprisingly, most respondents (78%) were not using AI tools to access health information and advice regarding arthritis.
Griffiths said the survey results were invaluable to informing Arthritis NZ’s work including advocacy activities and relationships with the health sector.
“It is vital for those who are able to change the system to listen to the voices of everyday people, because those voices often get missed.
“The ACI results both show the lived experience of people reflecting their journey and how they live with a type of arthritis, but also how much there is to tell and share about the impact of arthritis on people’s everyday lives.
“Unless you or someone in your family has arthritis you may not know what it is like so having the people from the community talking about their lived experience of arthritis is powerful and so important.”
Griffiths said findings such as those around the impact of arthritis on mental health provide new pathways for the organisation to work with other health providers in that field.
“We already work with other organisations around arthritis co-morbidities or other long-term conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and stroke.
“The survey findings around mental health opens the door for better understanding around the intersection of arthritis and other very important health considerations like anxiety and depression.”
Notes for editors
Arthritis NZ provides support, information and advocacy for New Zealanders living with joint pain and the over 140 different forms of arthritis.
The 2025 ACI report was prepared by Dr Richard Griffiths, Research Manager at Arthritis NZ together with input from colleagues and market research partner Insights HQ.
The development of the ACI was supported by grants from the Room-Simmonds Trust and Perpetual Guardian Foundation.
For further information on any of the projects and grants in this media release, please contact:
| Dr Richard Griffiths
Research Manager Arthritis NZ Mateponapona Aotearoa E: richard.griffiths@arthritis.org.nz M: 027 293 6709 |
Philip Kearney
Chief Executive Arthritis NZ Mateponapona Aotearoa E: philip.kearney@arthritis.org.nz M: 027 419 8946 |