Arthritis

Written by Jessica Munoz DPN, RN, CEN

Arthritis is a disorder associated with tenderness and swelling of one or more joints of the body. The common symptoms of arthritis are stiffness and joint pain, which usually worsen with growing age. The most common types of arthritis include rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and osteoarthritis (OA). It is mostly experienced in the following parts of the body:

• Hands
• Feet
• Knees
• Lower back
• Hips

Arthritis is one of the most common causes of disability in the United States. About 300,000 children and 50 million adults have some form of arthritis. The symptoms of this disease normally develop over time, but they may also be felt suddenly at any age. The typical age for developing RA is 30 to 50. However, it can affect younger adults, teens, and children as well.

OA often develops after 50 to 60 years of age, but certain studies reveal radiographic evidence of OA occurring in females in their 40s. Being overweight causes a higher risk of having OA.

Causes

There are several causes of developing arthritis, which includes:

• Injuries
• Obesity
• Wear and tear of joints
• Age over 50
• Muscle weakness
• Having a job or playing a sport that inserts abnormal stress on the joints
• Having certain autoimmune diseases or viral infection
• Having a family history of arthritis

Symptoms

The symptoms of arthritis are different depending on the type of arthritis. They can be mild in some people however in others they can be severe. The most common ones include: Swelling Stiffness Redness Pain Warmth Tenderness Decreased range of movement

Risk factors

The following can be the most common risk factors for arthritis:

• Age - The risk of different types of arthritis, including osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and gout increases with growing age.
• Family history - Certain types of arthritis are inherited. One may be more likely to develop arthritis if his parents or siblings have any type of arthritis.
• GenderThe sex - Males are more likely to have gout, while females are morestly at risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis.
• Previous joint injury - Those who have injured a joint, while playing a sport or wrestling, are at a high risk of developing arthritis in their joints.
• Obesity - Lifting excess weight can put abnormal stress on joints, like the knees, spine, and hips. Obesity increases the Those obese are also at a higher risk of developing any type of arthritis.

Types

Arthritis is a vast term that includes more than a hundred different joint conditions. The most common types of arthritis include:

Osteoarthritis: Osteoarthritis is a most common type of arthritis. It causes wear and tear damage to a joint’s cartilage (the hard, slick coating on the ends of bones where they form a joint). Cartilage cushions the ends of the bones and ensures nearly frictionless motion of the joints, but damage to the cartilage results in bone grinding directly on other bones, resulting in pain and limited mobility. This wear and tear can occur in elder age, but it can develop earlier owing to infection or an injury.

OA is also characterized by changes in the bones and damage to the connective tissues that attach muscles to bones and hold the joints together. If the cartilage in a joint is badly damaged, the lining of the joint may become swollen and inflamed.

Rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is another common type of arthritis, which is an autoimmune disorder. It develops when the immune system attacks the tissues of the body, leading to swelling of joints and other organs of the body.

This inflammatory response affects the synovium, a soft tissue in the joints that produces fluid for nourishing the cartilage and lubricating the joints. This inflammatory response eventually damages the bone as well as cartilage inside the joint. The exact cause of the attacks on the immune system is unknown however scientists have discovered that there are a few genetic markers that increase the risk of RA up to five times.

Gout

Gout is a common type of inflammatory arthritis that is severely painful. It commonly affects one joint at a time(usually the big toe joint). When the symptoms get worse, it is known as flares. When there are no symptoms, it is called remission.

Fibromyalgia

It is a form of arthritis that causes pain in the entire body (also called widespread pain), fatigue, sleep problems, and also emotional and mental disorders.

Childhood arthritis

One of the most common types of childhood arthritis is juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). It can lead to physical damage to joints forever and result in permanent disability.

Lupus

Lupus is an autoimmune, chronic disease that damages many different
parts of the body. The immune system of the body attacks itself as it can’t decipher between healthy tissue and foreign factors, like viruses and bacteria.

Treatment

Arthritis can’t be cured, but certain treatments exist that can help manage the condition. The treatment plan depends upon the severity of the disorder, its symptoms, and the patient’s overall health status.

Conservative (nonsurgical) treatments can include:

• Medication - Pain-killing and anti-inflammatory medicines can be used to relieve arthritis symptoms. Certain medications, called biologics, treat the immune system’s inflammatory effect. A physician can recommend biologics for relieving the patient’s psoriatic or rheumatoid arthritis.
• Physical therapy - It can help improve strength, range of movement, and overall mobility. Therapists can guide the patients on how to adjust their daily routine physical activities to reduce arthritic pain.
• Therapeutic injections - Cortisone injections can help relieve pain and inflammation in the joints temporarily. Arthritis pain in some joints, such as your knee, can be relieved with a treatment called viscosupplementation, which involves injecting lubricant to help smooth the movement of the joints.

Works cited

• Arthritis. 2023. Centers for Disease Control. https://www.cdc.gov/arthritis/
• Arthritis. 2024.Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/arthritis/symptoms-causes/syc-20350772