Arthritis
Arthritis constitutes one of America’s leading chronic health problems in patients over fifteen-years old. In fact, One third of adults in the U.S. endure chronic joint pain or arthritis. It has been dubbed a serious public health problem that is expected to reach around 60 million suffers in the next fourteen years. It’s the second leading cause of work disability, with heart disease as the first. Arthritis and related conditions cost the American economy an excess of 124 billion dollars a year in medical costs and workman’s compensation.
Most people know that arthritis causes swollen, achy joints. What few people realize is that arthritis is a term used for over 100 rheumatic diseases of the joints. Each rheumatic joint condition under the umbrella term arthritis has its own pattern of symptoms and affects its own combination of body parts. Their symptoms also vary in their degree of severity.
All of the 100 some odd types of arthritis have some things in common. They cause symptoms that negatively affect the musculoskeletal system, honing in on the joints whether bones are connected, causing pain stiffness and swelling of the joint cartilage. The joint cartilage at the end of the bones wears away, causing the bones to knock up against each other. The resultant damage can lead to discernible physical deformities as well as joint weakness and instability. All forms of arthritis cause swelling of the joints, joint lining, and/or the bones, cartilage, and connective tissues surrounding the joints. The condition can be limited to just one joint (monoarthritis)or can manifest itself in joints throughout the patient’s body, as is the case with polyarthritis. Arthritis symptoms can occur in any part of the body that contains joints, but they most frequently occur in the thumb, finger, foot, hip, knee, neck, back, or shoulders. Systemic forms of arthritis attack the entire body, and can even disrupt the functions of the heart, liver, kidneys, and other major organs. While symptoms can vary from one form to another, in addition to other symptoms, arthritis sufferers of all types report experiencing inflammation, pain, warmth and redness of overlying skin, and a limited range of motion. These symptoms can develop slowly over time or can hit a patient all of a sudden. Arthritis symptoms can interfere with the daily tasks that most of us take for granted, like climbing stairs or typing at our computers.
Traumatic injury can trigger a bout of arthritis, as can exposure to an infectious organism, such as a bacteria or fungi. Crystalline diseases such as gout, which create crystallized material in joint spaces, can also cause certain forms of arthritis. Other possible causes of arthritis include systemic rheumatic conditions, tumors, and bleeding conditions that result in the joints becoming engorged with blood.
Physical exams, laboratory tests, x-rays, and other imaging tests can all aid in the clinical diagnosis of arthritis. Such diagnostic tests may also help identify the cause and type of the arthritis condition. Obtaining this information will undoubtedly guide you towards the most effective course of treatment for your particular brand of the disease.