Living And Coping with Arthritis - How To Stay Active And
Arthritis pain can be frustrating. Nagging and crippling arthritis pain can continue day after day. How much happier would you be if you could stop your arthritis pain at this time and feel great all day? Having the nature of the disease really can provide you with the right answers.
What is Arthritis?
Arthritis comprises over 100 different diseases as well as conditions. The term arthritis means "joint inflammation". When joints are inflamed, it causes pain and, sometimes also limits motion of the joints that are affected. For many people, arthritis pain has a large impact on their life. Arthritis is second only to heart disease as a cause of work disability. Arthritis limits everyday activities such as walking, dressing and also bathing for more than million Americans. Each year, arthritis results in 750,000hospitalizations and also 36 million outpatient visits. Arthritis is not just an old person's disease. Nearly two-thirds of people with arthritis are younger than 65 years including nearly children. Arthritis affects children and people of all racial and ethnic groups but is more common among women and older adults. The disease can affect different parts of the body. Two of the most common forms are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.
- Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease in which the joint lining becomes inflamed as part of the body's immune system activity.
- RA is one of the most serious and disabling types, affecting mostly women.
- Rheumatoid arthritis is two to three times more common in women than in men and generally moves between the ages of 20 and 50.
- Both sides of the body are usually affected at the same time.
- Symptoms of RA differ from person to person but can generally include:
Joint Tenderness, Warmth, and Swelling.
Pain and stiffness lasting for more than One hour in the morning or after a long relaxation.
Joint Inflammation in the Wrist and Finger Joints Best to the Hand .
Fatigue, an occasional fever, and a general sense of not feeling well . Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis. It is a degenerative joint disease in which the cartilage that covers the ends of bones in the joint deteriorates, causing pain and loss of movement as bone begins to rub against bone. OA commonly affects the joints of the fingers, knees, sides, and spine. Osteoarthritis is more common in older people because they have been using their joints longer. Using the joints to do the same process over and over or simply using them over time can make osteoarthritis worse.
Younger People can Also Get Osteoarthritis
Athletes are at risk because they utilize their joints so much. People who have jobs that require the same movement over and over are also at risk. Injuries to a joint increase the risk of osteoarthritis in the joint later on. Excess fat can speed up arthritis in the knees, hips and spine. The most common symptom of Osteoarthritis is pain in the affected joint(s) after repetitive use. Joint pain is usually worse later in the day.
There May be Swelling, Warmth, and Creaking of the Affected Joints
Signs of OA may greatly vary. A few patients can be debilitated by their symptoms. On the other hand, others may have remarkably few symptoms in spite of dramatic degeneration of the joints apparent on x-rays. Symptoms also can be intermittent. These 2forms have very different causes, risk factors, and effects on our bodies, however they often share a common symptompersistent joint pain.
What are the Causes of Arthritis? Primary OA is Mostly Related to Aging
With aging, the water content of the cartilage increases and the protein makeup of cartilage degenerates. Repeated use of the joints over the years disagrees with your skin and inflames the cartilage, causing joint pain and swelling. Eventually, cartilage starts to degenerate by flaking or building tiny crevasses. Inflammation of the cartilage can also stimulate new bone outgrowths (spurs) to form around the joints. Sometimes osteoarthritis follows an injury to a joint.
For Example, a Young Person Might Hurt His Knee Badly Playing Soccer
Then, years after the knee has apparently healed, he or she might get arthritis as part of his knee joint. RA is an autoimmune disease. This means the body's natural immune system does not run since it should; it attacks healthy combined tissue, initiating a process of inflammation as well as joint damage. RA is a kind of chronic arthritis that occurs in important joints on both sides of the body (such as hands, wrists or knees). This particular symmetry helps distinguish RA from other types of arthritis. Rheumatoid arthritis occurs most frequently in the 30-50 age group, although can start at any age. It is strongly associated with the HLA marker DR4 - hence Family history is an important risk factor. The disease affectsFemales:Males in a 4:1 ratio. Other conditions can also cause arthritis. Some include:
- Gout, in which crystals build up in the joints.
- That usually impacts the big foot.
Lupus, in which the body's defense system can harm the joints, the heart, the skin, the kidneys, as well as other organs.
What are you able to do about it?
- Some folks may get worried that arthritis means they won't manage to work or take care of their children and their family.
- Others think that you just have to accept things like arthritis.
- Although there is not yet a cure for arthritis, significantly can be done today to lessen pain and boost joint function.
- Learning how to handle pain over the long term is essential to maintaining a good quality of life.
- There are things you can do to keep the damage from getting worse.
- They might also make you feel better.
- Here are some simple things to do:
Lose Weight in Case You are Overweight
Exercise regularly for short periods. Going for a walk every day will help, too.
Use Canes Along With Other Special Products to Protect the Joints.
Avoid lifting heavy things.
Don't Pull on Objects to Move Them-Push Them Instead
Use heat or cold to reduce pain or stiffness.
- The pain and also disability that accompany osteoarthritis can be decreased through early diagnosis and appropriate management.
- Thus if you have prolonged signs lasting more than several days -go see your doctor.
- The doctor will examine you and may take x sun rays (pictures) of your bones or joints to decide if you have arthritis and also what type you have.
- After the doctor knows what kind of arthritis you have, he or she will talk with you about the best way to treat it.
- The doctor may give you a prescription for medicine that will help with the pain, stiffness, and inflammation.
- The good news is that now there is a way to stop your pain with a medication .
- Celebrex is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID),specifically a COX-2 inhibitor, which relieves pain and swelling inflammation).
- It represents a huge breakthrough in the treatment of discomfort, inflammation, and stiffness of arthritis.
Celebrex is thought to fight pain and inflammation by inhibiting the result of a natural enzyme called COX-2. Unlike the older medicines, nonetheless, it does not interfere with a similar chemical, called COX-1, which puts a protective impact on the lining of the stomach. Celebrex doesn't make the stomach bleeding as well as sores that traditional nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) might.
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About the author:Richard Clement is an online publisher devoted in helping online users obtaining appropriate and effective health care. Visit my site http://www.e-drugstore.ws/arthritis.html for more information.
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