Overview
Arthritis is inflammation of one or more of your joints, leading to joint pain and stiffness. There are many types of arthritis, but the most common types are Osteoarthritis and Rheumatoid arthritis.
Osteoarthritis causes cartilage (the tissue that covers the ends of bones where they form a joint) to break down.
Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disorder that first targets the synovium lining (the tissue that lines the joint).
Symptoms
The most common signs and symptoms of this disease appear on the joints. Depending on the type of disease you have, your signs and symptoms may include:
- Pain
- Stiffness
- Swelling
- Redness
- Decreased range of motion
Causes
The causes of each type of arthritis are different. So, we will describe them separately.
Osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis involves wear-and-tear damage to your joints’ cartilage (the hard coating on the ends of bones). With continued damage, the cartilage becomes progressively thinner, eventually resulting in bone grinding directly on bone, which causes pain and restricted movement. Following are the causes of this wear and tear:
- Old age
- Infection
- Injury
Rheumatoid Arthritis
In rheumatoid arthritis, the body’s immune system attacks the lining of the joint capsule (the capsule is tough connective tissue structure that encloses the joint space). This lining, known as the synovial membrane, becomes inflamed and swollen. The disease process can eventually destroy cartilage and bone within the joint.
Diagnosis
For the diagnosis of this , both, lab tests, and imaging modalities are used. They can be listed as:
- Blood analysis
- Urine analysis
- Joint fluid analysis
- X-ray
- CT scan
- MRI
- Ultrasound
The treatment can either be medical or surgical.
Treatment
Medical Treatment
- Analgesics
- NSAIDS
- DMARDs
- Corticosteroids
Surgical Treatment
- Joint repair
- Joint fusion
- Joint replacement
