An Overview
Arthritis affects millions of Americans yearly. It affects people of all ages, but it most often comes on as a person gets older. Many types of arthritis are chronic which means they last a lifetime. Some types of arthritis cause swelling, or inflammation.
Arthritis is a Greek work meaning: "arthr" = joint and "itis" = inflammation. The skin over the affected joint may appear swollen and red and feel warm to touch. Some types of arthritis can also cause you to feel very tired and "worn out".
Pain from arthritis can be continuous or it can come and go. It may happen when you are moving or after you have been still for a period of time. The pain can come in one spot or in many parts that may be affected by arthritis. Your joints may be stiff and may be hard to move.
When arthritis is active, you may find it hard to do daily tasks that in the past may have been easy for you. The joints of the body are affected most frequently by arthritis. A joint is a smooth, lubricated surface that joins two bones. The ends of these bones are covered by cartilage that is very durable and provides a shock absorber for our joints. This cartilage does not have a blood supply. It gets its oxygen and nutrients from the surrounding joint fluid.
When a joint has weight on it, such as with walking, the pressure squeezes fluid out of the cartilage and when the pressure is relieved, the fluid seeps back in along with nutrients and oxygen. Understanding this action, the health of the cartilage depends on the joint being used.
Once the cartilage is injured, it is limited in its ability to repair itself. Injured cartilage loses it resistance to wear which cause the two joint surfaces to rub together and shed particles of cartilage. After time, this rubbing together causes the joint surface to wear. This process continues until most of the joint cartilage is gone. The wear of the cartilage produce deformities, pain, stiffness, swelling, warmth and decreased ability to do activities of daily living.
Certain types of arthritis can also affect other parts of the body such as skin and internal organs. There are over 100 types of arthritis. Evaluating for arthritis and which type you may have is dependent on a physical examine and testing that will be ordered by your doctor. He/She will inform you of what type of arthritis that you have.