PLEASE READ: World AUTOimmune & AUTOinflammatory Arthritis Day (#AiArthritisDay) was the first program the International Foundation for Autoimmune & Autoinflammatory Arthritis (AiArthritis for short) established in 2012 after becoming a nonprofit organization. It is a day for ALL community members and patient organizations to celebrate, DRIVE education and awareness, and fundraise. The fundraising component attached to this event, which benefits the hosts of World AiArthritis Day, is a separate from the Race-A-Thon livestream. ALL patient organizations are encouraged to do their own fundraisers in honor of this day. If you would like to donate to a different organization, please visit their website for more information.

The Race-A-Thon to DRIVE AUTOimmune & AUTOinflammatory Arthritis Awareness

In association with the broader World AUTOimmune & AUTOinflammatory Arthritis Day Campaign

What is an Autoimmune or Autoinflammatory Arthritis Disease? There are over 100 "AUTO" diseases, but only about 2 dozen of them also include inflammatory arthritis as a major disease factor, too. The AUTO disease and the inflammatory arthritis start in the immune system and TRAVEL throughout the whole body as inflammation. This combination of AUTO + Inflammatory Arthritis makes this group of diseases unique. Approximately 1 in 10 people, or 450 million people worldwide, are living with one of these diseases*.

Not the same as 'arthritis'. The kind of arthritis associated with these diseases is different than the more common 'arthritis', called osteoarthritis, which is caused by age, injury, repetitive pressure on the joint from weight, or wear-and-tear.

AUTO + Inflammatory Arthritis = AiArthritis Disease. We aim to educate the world about the main AUTO symptoms that happen regardless of diagnosis (example fatigue, brain fog, varied degrees of elevated temperature) plus the inflammatory arthritis (which also presents and feels different than osteoarthritis). By doing this, we hope to ACCELERATE detection, diagnosis and access to treatments, improve quality of life and chances to achieve remission, and help those without our diseases understand and support the challenges associated with them.

The Race-A-Thon

The Race-A-Thon to DRIVE AUTOimmune & AUTOinflammatory Arthritis Awareness is an 8-hour livestream event hosted by the International Foundation for Autoimmune & Autoinflammatory Arthritis (AiArthritis) in conjunction with World AUTOimmune & AUTOinflammatory Arthritis Day. Patient Organizations and advocates from around the world are invited to participate so they can share important resources and educational messages. All participants are encouraged to raise funds for their own organizations.

Tune in on Facebook on May 19th from 11:00am to 7:00pm EST (click here)

World AUTOimmune & AUTOinflammatory Arthritis Day

#AiArthritisDay was established by the patient organization AiArthritis in 2012, in response to patients requesting a day that differentiates their diseases from osteoarthritis. Since then, the purpose has evolved to include education and awareness generally, as well as to collect important resources from around the world so people affected by these diseases can connect to them.

May 20th, or May 19th at 6am ET - May 21st at 5am ET. This day is celebrated annually on May 20th, as it TRAVELS through all time zones globally (so it's actually 47 straight hours)! This event historically unites thousands of people in 60+ countries worldwide.

Get Involved! Mostly hosted on social media and small, in-person events, we established the "Race-A-Thon" livestream on YouTube in 2023.

You can learn more about World AUTOimmune & AUTOinflammatory Arthritis Day at https://www.aiarthritis.org/aiarthritisday

*Estimate includes those diagnosed with Undifferentiated Disease or who have symptoms that could result in an Undifferentiated Disease or full AiArthritis Disease diagnosis but who are left as "mystery patients' (no diagnosis).

World AUTOimmune & AUTOinflammatory Arthritis Day 2024 -- AiArthritis Fundraiser to DRIVE Awareness

Consider Choosing AiArthritis to Support this World AiArthritis Day!