How long can you ignore the early symptoms of arthritis? The World Arthritis Day – The early symptoms that you shouldn’t ignore
World Arthritis Day is observed on every October 12 to spread awareness of rheumatic and musculoskeletal disorders. Its impact on one’s life and educating people the symptoms & preventive measures and guiding for the early diagnosis to cope up any further complications. The day focuses on bringing people around the world on a single platform to raise voice to create enough opportunity to support and provide better treatment options to the people affected with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs).
Arthritis is an inflammatory joint disorder, which affects the joints tissues around the joint, and other connective tissues, causing joint pain and stiffness. The most common are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Due to the lack of awareness and support, arthritis and its related condition has crippled much life around the world.
Types of Arthritis
Osteoarthritis (OA): It is the most common form of arthritis and is also known as wear-and-tear arthritis or degenerative joint disease. Hands, hips, and knees are the most common locations for OA. OA occurs when cartilage within the joints begins to break down, which ultimately changes the underlying bone.
Rheumatoid arthritis, or RA,: Inflammation (painful swelling) in the affected areas of your body is caused by your immune system attacking healthy cells in your body.
Psoriatic arthritis: Some people with psoriasis suffer from this type of arthritis, which causes swollen, stiff, and painful joints.
Spondyloarthropathies: There are several forms of osteoarthritis, which usually occur in your spine and nearby joints. They can be painful and can sometimes damage vertebrae, bones, and joints. Inflammation (swelling, redness, and pain) in the joints is the result of arthritis.
Symptoms
1: Joint Pain- This pain is usually felt on one or both sides of your joints, which can be in any part of the body, such as the fingers, knees, hips, or elbows. Joint pain may also cause stiffness and swelling.
If you have persistent joint pain and other symptoms like fever and weight loss, talk to a doctor right away so they can diagnose what’s wrong with you.
2: Tenderness and swelling-Arthritis is a chronic and progressive disease that attacks your joints, including your hands and feet. Symptoms of arthritis are discomfort, stiffness, and swelling. In addition, you may feel joint pain or stiffness. If you experience these symptoms on one side of your body, it might be arthritis. The symptoms of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis are inflammation, fluid buildup, and warmth.
3: Morning stiffness in joints-Some patients might also experience stiffness in their bones, particularly in the morning. The stiffness and the pain might increase when it rains or if there is a change in humidity.
4: Difficulty moving a joint-If any motion causes a lot of pain, inflammation may be the problem. If the same degree of pain can’t be felt with passive motion but can be created with voluntary motion, joint contracture may be the issue. If it’s not motion but is still discomfort, stiffness from spasticity or rigidity from nervous system disorder might be the issue.
5: loss of appetite-In most cases, weight loss is not drastic, but patients may notice that they don’t really have an appetite for food, leading to a loss of weight. An increase in inflammation can affect metabolism and lead to a loss of muscle mass.
6: Weakness- Arthritis is a disease characterized by joint pain and stiffness, which gets progressively worse over time. It is not uncommon for symptoms of arthritis to become gradually worse over time.
Treatment
Pain relief options include creams, gels, lotions, and ointments, which contain topical NSAIDs such as diclofenac.
Physical therapy: Occupational therapy can be helpful in improving muscle strength, improving flexibility, and reducing pain.
Acupuncture: This treatment involves inserting thin needles at specific points on the body to assist with pain relief and improving the blood flow.
Yoga: That in mind, dance classes can help improve your flexibility and muscle tone and strengthen your moves.
Arthritis is an inflammation of the joints that can affect one or many. Inflammatory arthritis describes a group of diseases caused by an overactive immune system. The most common symptoms are joint pain and stiffness. Affected joints may feel warm, swollen, and tender. But inflammatory arthritis can also affect other tissues in the body, including the lungs, heart, eyes, skin, and other organs.
When someone’s body is exposed to foreign substances, usually they will experience lymphocyte production, which in turn triggers production of inflammatory cells and immune proteins, which causes the symptoms of inflammation, which usually resolves once the foreign substances are gone.
