Common Symptoms Of Rheumatoid Arthritis Explained
The condition of arthritis is defined as a problem with the musculoskeletal system where there is stiffness, inflammation, pain and damage to the cartilage in the joints. The bones in the joints don’t rib against each other if there is enough of cartilage to protect them. The cells or Chondrocytes which cartilage is made up of are similar to the ones in the other glands in the human body. The cartilage cells that are the chondrocytes are usually replaced by new cells when the old ones die.
Over time, inflammation might kill more cartilage cells which make replacement difficult to keep up with. This happens when the body is not healthy and suffers from malnutrition, injury can also be another cause. Damage from this condition can also cause joint weakness, instability and deformities and interrupt daily activities. Typically, arthritis is treated with medication, physical therapy, and changes to the person’s lifestyle. The last resort to treat joint problems is the invasive joint replacement therapy and is only resorted to after all other treatments have failed.
There are two main categories that arthritis can be grouped into, these categories are based on the ‘generalized’ or ‘localized’ areas of the joints or body that have been affected and then they branch off into sub-categories. One of the sub-categories is localized conditions which only affect the soft tissue that surrounds the bones or joints, and is used to relate to conditions like tendonitis or bursitis. A sub-category of localized arthritis affects one or some of the joints like hip or knee joints. One of the foremost sub-categories of generalized arthritis is a condition that affects muscle and soft tissue without swelling or inflammation. Fibromyalgia, even though it isn’t associated with joint damage, is a very common type of arthritis which can be placed under this particular category.
In the second sub-group is a condition in which the person suffering from arthritis may have swelling on the whole body. Rheumatoid arthritis, gout and psortiatis arthritis are examples of the next conditions in this subcategory. The other kinds of arthritis are vasculitis (any organ); polymyositis (muscles); and systemic lupus erythematosus (skin, kidneys, or other organs).
A person can have more than one type of arthritis and it includes more than 100 medical conditions that affect approximately 46 million adults and 300,000 children in the United States. Arthritis may affect people in infancy and its effects are more prominent in adulthood and are most common in the form of osteoarthritis. The number of people suffering out of this condition is increasing proportionally with the increasing average age of the American population; with old age setting in people suffering with arthritis is increasing day by day.
124 billion dollars a year are spent annually on medical care and other expenses connected to arthritis and related infirmities, making it a foremost cause for disability. Osteoarthritis can be prevented by taking a few precautionary measures; these include, maintaining suitable or appropriate body weight, and consuming plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, which are good sources for the vitamins C and D. Also by making sure they are getting enough calcium (adults: 1000-1500mg per day), regular exercise and to avoid injuries brought about by sports activities.
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