Arthritis
Arthritis is a broad term used to denote pain in joints
that arises on account of degeneration of cartilage or
inflammation of joint lining. Over the years, it has become
one of the most serious ailments affecting Americans. In
fact, the number of Americans afflicted by arthritis has
climbed from 33 million in 1998 to 66 million in 2005
(http://www.Arthritis.org).
The two most common forms of arthritis are osteoarthritis
and rheumatoid arthritis. Osteoarthritis results when the
cartilage covering the bones starts to shrivel and die. The
result is that the bones start rubbing against each other
causing intense pain. In the case of rheumatoid arthritis
the pain is caused by the inflammation of joint lining.
The other common medical conditions that are clubbed under
arthritis are: gout, ankylosing spondylitis, juvenile
arthritis and fibromyalgia. Besides this, there are at
least 100 different kinds of joint pain that are broadly
referred to as arthritis. All these affect the
muscoskeletal system of the body. Sometimes, they even
impact on major organs like lungs, heart etc.
The most common affects of arthritis are: pain, stiffness,
inflammation and weakening of joints. The joints that are
commonly affected are hips, knees, wrists, fingers, spine,
elbows, shoulders and ankles. When this happens, the
patient finds it difficult to carry out basic tasks like
walking, climbing stairs, cutting vegetables, wearing
clothes, getting in or out of cars etc.
Most Americans wrongly associate arthritis with old age.
This is not true. Arthritis affects people of all ages,
including children. Women are especially vulnerable to
arthritis. In fact, in US arthritis is second only to heart
disease as the cause of work disability.
It is important to check the onset of arthritis by seeking
medical opinion when the first symptoms manifest. Alarm
bells should go off when an individual starts experiencing
pain in a joint or starts suffering from stiffness at the
time of waking. These are signs of osteoarthritis. When
the joints feel hot, red, and tender then it is a likely
case of rheumatoid arthritis.
Arthritis results from several different causes. A major
reason is physical stress or injury that causes the
cartilage to start cracking up. This can happen to
sportsmen or to workers who carry out repetitive physical
activity, exercising pressure on some joints. The cartilage
can sometimes even break. When this happens the bones come
closer, and start rubbing against each other, causing pain.
In some cases, joints get disfigured and make movement
difficult, if not impossible.
Arthritis can also be caused by obesity. This happens
when the knees can't take extra load, and the cartilage
starts getting stretched. Individuals who suffer from
improper joint alignments are particularly susceptible
to osteoarthritis. So are women, after the age of 45.
Their finger joints most often become a prey of
osteoarthritis. Age, of course, is the natural cause of
arthritis because all ligaments weaken with age.
Rheumatoid arthritis, on the other hand, is caused by the
improper working of the body's immune system. A common
symptom is the swelling of joint lining that causes pain.
Unlike osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis results in the
malfunctioning of multiple joints. This is what makes it
more painful.
A good resource to get information about arthritis is the
website http://www. arthritis.org. Another site that
provides useful information about arthritis is
http://www. arthritis.com.
