Disease Blog: Arthritis

Arthritis

What is Arthritis?

The US National Library of Medicine says that if you have trouble moving around or feel pain and stiffness in your body, you could have arthritis. In the majority of cases arthritis. Causes pain and swelling in the joints. Eventually a swollen joint can suffer severe damage. In some cases, arthritis can cause problems in the patient's eye, skin or other organs. According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 1 in every 5 American adults, about 50 million people, have doctor-diagnosed arthritis. As the country's population ages, it is estimated that this number will increase to at least 67% by 2030. Arthritis is not a single disease - it covers over 100 medical conditions. Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis and generally affects elderly patients. Some forms of arthritis can affect people at a very early age.

What causes Arthritis?

Basically, a joint is where one bone moves on another bone. Ligaments hold the two bones together. The ligaments are like elastic bands, while they keep the bones in place your muscles relax or contract to make the joint move.

Cartilage covers the bone surface to stop the two bones from rubbing directly against each other and the covering of the cartilage allows the joint to work smoothly and painlessly.

A capsule surrounding the joint is the space within the joint - the joint cavity - has synovial fluid. Synovial fluid nourishes the joint and the cartilage. The synovial fluid is produced by the synovium (synovial membrane) which lines the joint cavity.

If you have arthritis something goes wrong with the joint(s). What goes wrong depends on what type of arthritis you have. It could be that the cartilage is wearing away, a lack of fluid, autoimmunity (your body attacking itself), infection, or a combination of many factors.

Medications for Arthritis:

Medications

One with Arthritis can use medications known as asnonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). The drugs react with the chemicals called prostaglandins in the body, which trigger pain, inflammation, and fever. Some NSAIDs are available over-the-counter for relief of pain and fever at your local drugstore, including ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil), naproxen (Aleve), and aspirin. There are also many other prescription NSAIDs available such as celecoxib (Celebrex), ketoprofen (Orudis), naproxen (Naprosyn), piroxicam (Feldene), and sulindac (Clinoril); you'll need a prescription from your doctor. Prescription doses of NSAIDs also curb inflammation