It Is Not Clear How Reactive Arthritis Develops
Doctors know that certain infections are more likely to trigger reactive arthritis, and that people who carry the gene HLA-B27 are more likely to get it, but they are still researching exactly how reactive arthritis develops.
Current hypotheses describe a series of events that occur between the original bacterial infection, a persons genes, and his or her immune system. Some hypotheses also consider bacteria in the gut2,3 called the gut microbiome.
See Connections Between the Gut Microbiome and Arthritis
When To See A Doctor About Early Arthritis Signs
You should see a doctor right away if one of your joints suddenly becomes swollen, red and hot to the touch, or if you cant bear weight on it at all, since those can be signs of gout or a serious infection, Haque says.
Arthritis has no cure, but there are steps you can take to minimize pain and stiffness, says Rochelle Rosian, a rheumatologist with the Cleveland Clinic Department of Rheumatologic and Immunologic Diseases. There is a lot we can do to help you feel better, she says. You can live a long and healthy life with arthritis.
Your primary care doctor may be able to treat your symptoms if theyre mild, or he or she may refer you to a rheumatologist, a sports medicine doctor, an orthopedist or a podiatrist, depending on your symptoms and where your problem is located.
Expect your doctor to ask you what makes the pain better and what makes it worse, how long youve had the pain and stiffness and whether you have had any trauma to the area. Its not unusual for a high school sports injury to manifest as arthritis in a joint decades later, Rosian says.
You are leaving AARP.org and going to the website of our trusted provider. The providers terms, conditions and policies apply. Please return to AARP.org to learn more about other benefits.
Your email address is now confirmed.
Youll start receiving the latest news, benefits, events, and programs related to AARPs mission to empower people to choose how they live as they age.
How You Can Reach Remission
Drug treatment can give you good or even great relief from your symptoms and keep your day-to-day activities close to normal. Early, aggressive treatment with medications known as disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs help ease symptoms and slow joint damage. That makes remission more likely.
Your doctor may prescribe DMARDs along with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or low-dose steroids to ease swelling and pain.
If traditional DMARDs don’t work, your doctor may suggest stronger drugs called biologics. They stop inflammation by going to work on the parts of your immune system that trigger it.
You may need to try a combination of drugs until you’re in remission.
Don’t Miss: Is Banana Good For Rheumatoid Arthritis
What You Need To Know
- Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis to affect the spine.
- Arthritis can occur anywhere along the spine but is more frequent in the lower back and neck.
- Pain and stiffness are the most common symptoms of spinal arthritis.
- Causes of spinal arthritis are still largely unknown except for osteoarthritis, which is typically a result of wear and tear.
- Spinal arthritis treatment may include pain medications, steroid injections, physical therapy and surgery in severe cases.
See Your Doctor If You Relapse
If you are in remission and joint pain and stiffness start to flare, tell your doctor soon. Flares are important, says Dr. Fields. They may be telling you that a drug that was initially working is losing its effectiveness. Seeing your doctor promptly allows him or her to adjust your treatment plan, which can prevent serious damage to your joints and help you feel better.
Quick Links
Read Also: Are Eggs Bad For Psoriatic Arthritis
Living With Rheumatoid Arthritis
Rheumatoid arthritis is a lifelong disease. When its treated, it may go away for a little while, but it usually comes back. Its important to see your doctor as soon as symptoms begin. The earlier you start treatment, the better your outcome. Some of the damage from RA is irreversible, so finding the disease and treating it early is very important.
If left untreated, RA can cause other health problems. Your hands may become bent or twisted. Other joints can become deformed. Inflammation will affect your cartilage and bones. Lung and heart problems also can occur. Talk to your doctor if you notice any new symptoms or problems.
Can Arthritis Pain Be Controlled
There are many things you can do to help control your arthritis pain. The goals of these methods are to control pain by:
- learning new ways to reduce pain
- taking as few pain medicines as possible
- changing pain habits that disrupt your normal lifestyle
- increasing your physical and social activity so you can return to an active life as much as possible
The methods listed here will work differently for different people. So some methods may work for you but some may not. Some methods are things you can do for yourself. Others require help from your doctor or other health professionals. Talk to your doctor about these methods. With a little practice you will find the right ones for you.
Recommended Reading: Is Banana Bad For Arthritis
Stop Eating An Unhealthy Diet
What’s your diet got to do with arthritis? Eating well and maintaining your ideal weight is especially important if you’ve got arthritis. Excess pounds can put lots of stress on weight-bearing joints, which is likely to make arthritis pain worse. Even moderate weight gain can stress joints that are already burdened by arthritis.
How Is Plant Thorn Arthritis Diagnosed
Plant thorn arthritis is suspected in a patient who presents with a single joint that is inflamed after it has been punctured by a plant thorn. This is true even if the patient recalls removing the thorn, as described above, because the thorn can leave behind tiny fragments of thorn matter that leads to the chronic inflammation of plant thorn arthritis.
Removal of joint fluid is performed to rule out bacterial or fungal infection of the joint.
Ultimately, the diagnosis of plant thorn arthritis requires either detection of a piece of thorn within the joint by radiology testing or surgical removal of the thorn fragments and identification of the fragments microscopically in the laboratory. Sometimes tiny pieces of thorns can be visualized using magnetic resonance imaging , high-resolution computerized tomography , or ultrasound imaging. Often, however, the residual thorn fragments are too small to be seen with these methods and are detected only when identified in tissue that is surgically removed from the joint.
The affected joint lining tissue is examined in the pathology department using microscopes. The tissue forms a characteristic reaction, called a granulomatous reaction, within the synovium . The microscopic thorn fragments are easily identified using a polarized light microscope as they appear brilliantly shiny to the examining pathologist.
Phoenix roebeleniiPhoenix roebelenii
Don’t Miss: What Helps Lower Back Arthritis
Can You Get Rid Of Herpes Yourself
As mentioned above, the herpes virus cannot be completely cured but it can be treated. And while there is no way to treat the virus yourself from home, the blisters can sometimes heal and clear up on their own without treatment.
If you are experiencing discomfort from herpes sores, and you have been diagnosed with herpes by your doctor, according to the NHS there are a handful of ways to help relieve herpes symptoms, these include:
- Keep the area clean to avoid the blisters becoming infected
- Apply petroleum jelly or painkilling cream to ease any pain when using the toilet
- Avoid wearing tight clothing that could irritate the blisters
- Dont apply ice directly to the blisters
What Do Doctors Do
It’s not always easy for doctors to diagnose JIA right away. JIA itself can have lots of different symptoms, and some infections, like Lyme disease, have similar symptoms to JIA. So doctors will want to rule out any other possibilities before deciding something is JIA.
If a doctor suspects a patient has JIA, he or she will ask about the person’s symptoms, find out if others in the family have had arthritis, and do a complete physical examination to look for joint swelling, eye problems, and rashes. A doctor may do blood tests and X-rays. In some cases, doctors may use a needle to take a sample of synovial fluid from a person’s joint.
Sometimes, a doctor might need to see a patient for several months to determine the particular type of JIA the person has.
You May Like: Is Banana Good For Rheumatoid Arthritis
What Is A Rheumatologist
Rheumatologists are expert physicians who specialize in diagnosing and treating inflammatory arthritis and autoimmune diseases where joints can be involved. They also care for people with other diseases of the connective tissue and those with osteoporosis. As needed, the rheumatologist coordinates the care his or her patients receive from surgeons and other specialists, as well as from other health care professionals.
In many, but not all cases, people become aware that they have inflammatory arthritis when they develop symptoms of inflammation in one or more joints. On a simple level, joints are where two bones are attached. A joint can be fibrous and a simple connection without movement, such as joints in the pelvis. However, most joints are “ball and socket joints”, which are covered with a smooth layer of specialized tissue called cartilage – allowing for a gliding motion examples are the knees, elbows, shoulders, hips or elbows. Other structures that attach the bones to each other and to muscles include the tendons, tissue that attaches muscles to bones and the ligaments, tissues that attach bone to bone. These can also be targets of inflammation in inflammatory arthritis. Furthermore, the joints are held together by a capsule, a kind of protective container that is lined with a membrane called the synovium. In inflammatory arthritis inflammation of the synovium is what usually causes pain, stiffness and swelling. This is called “synovitis”.
Should I See A Doctor
Its common to have aches and pains in your muscles and joints from time to time. This may especially be true if you take part in unusual or strenuous physical activities.
So, how can you tell the difference between the early signs of arthritis and normal pain and stiffness? And, how do you know when you should see a doctor about your symptoms?
If you have swelling or stiffness that you cant explain and that doesn’t go away in a few days, or if it becomes painful to touch your joints, you should see a doctor. The earlier you get a diagnosis and start the right type of treatment, the better the outcome will be.
Here are some other things to think about that might help you decide whether you need to see a doctor:
Read Also: Is Banana Good For Arthritis
Questions For Your Doctor
- How do I know if my joint pain is caused by rheumatoid arthritis?
- Does RA run in families?
- What medicines would work best for me, and what are the side effects?
- Is there anything I can do to prevent flare-ups of RA?
- What are the pros and cons of surgery to treat RA?
- Does RA affect my life expectancy?
Can Diverticulitis Go Away On Its Own
Yes, an attack of uncomplicated diverticulitis can go away on its own. However, you must visit your doctor for a thorough evaluation of the episode. Most attacks of uncomplicated diverticulitisare not life-threatening and usually resolve within a week. Complicated diverticulitisneeds medical attention because it can cause serious complications.
Recommended Reading: What Helps Lower Back Arthritis
How Reactive Arthritis Is Treated
There is currently no cure for reactive arthritis, but most people get better in around six months. Meanwhile, treatment can help to relieve symptoms such as pain and stiffness.
Symptoms can often be controlled using non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and painkillers such as ibuprofen.
Severe symptoms may require more powerful steroid medication or disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs .
Read more about treating reactive arthritis.
Spinal Arthritis May Contribute To Other Issues In The Spine
Spinal arthritis may cause bone spurs â overgrowths on the edges of the bones. In the spine, bone spurs particularly affect facet joints, making them grow larger. This condition is called facet joint hypertrophy. Although bone spurs on their own are not harmful, they may narrow the passages for the spinal cord and the nerves exiting the spine. This may lead to two painful conditions:
-
Spinal stenosisâ compression of the spinal cord inside the spinal canal
-
Radiculopathyâ pinching of the peripheral nerves as they exit the spine
Ankylosing spondylitis may also cause additional problems such as:
-
Stress fractures in places where new bone has formed
-
Collapsed vertebrae
-
A spinal deformity called kyphosis
You May Like: Is Banana Good For Rheumatoid Arthritis
Facts You Should Know About Plant Thorn Arthritis
- Plant thorn arthritis is a noninfectious inflammation of a joint as a result of a thorn puncturing the joint and leaving residual plant matter lodged within the joint.
- Plant thorn arthritis typically affects only a single joint — the joint that was pierced by the plant thorn.
- Plant thorn arthritis causes the involved joint to be swollen, slightly reddish, stiff, and painful. The joint loses its full range of motion and is often tender.
- The symptoms of plant thorn arthritis may occur long after the thorn is removed from the affected joint.
- The diagnosis of plant thorn arthritis requires either detection of a piece of thorn within the joint by radiology testing or surgical removal of the thorn fragments and identification of the fragments microscopically in the laboratory.
- Synovectomy is the surgical procedure that is used to cure plant thorn arthritis.
Stop Ignoring Your Physical Limitations
Just as there are people with arthritis who aren’t active at all, there are those who push beyond their limits. The trick is to pace your activities. Overdoing it is just as harmful as underdoing it.
Pushing your limits can increase pain and put you at higher risk of joint damage. Respect pain and choose activities with your physical limitations in mind.
Also Check: Best Treatment For Lower Back Arthritis
Osteoarthritis Of The Spine
Osteoarthritis is the most common form of spinal arthritis. It usually affects the lower back and develops through wear and tear. As the cartilage between the joints slowly breaks down, it leads to inflammation and pain. Because the pain is from mechanical damage, it is typically more noticeable when you bend or twist your back. Past back injuries may also contribute to the development of degenerative arthritis of the spine.
Osteoarthritis of the spine usually affects the facet joints between the vertebrae. It is also known as facet joint arthritis, facet joint syndrome and facet disease. In some cases, degeneration of the spinal discs may contribute to facet joint arthritis. As discs between the vertebrae become thinner, more pressure is transferred to the facet joints. This leads to more friction and more damage to the cartilage.
When these degenerative changes occur in the neck, this condition is called cervical spondylosis. Arthritis in the neck doesnât always cause pain, and many people have no noticeable symptoms.
How To Stop Reactive Arthritis Coming Back
There is a risk you could develop reactive arthritis again if you get another infection. The best way to avoid this is by protecting yourself against STIs and bowel infections.
The most effective way of preventing STIs is to always use a barrier method of contraception, such as a condom, during sex with a new partner.
Read advice about STIs and contraception.
Ensuring good standards of hygiene when preparing and storing food can help to prevent bowel infections. Read about food safety and preventing food poisoning.
Page last reviewed: 09 February 2021 Next review due: 09 February 2024
Also Check: Is Eating Tomatoes Bad For Arthritis
Doctor Gets Plant Thorn Arthritis
One patient’s story
In a reasonable attempt to better the lives of my daughter, Cara, and son-in-law, Jim, as well as enjoy their company during a concentrated effort, I assisted them in landscaping one fine weekend day.
Jim was industriously off at the store purchasing cement blocks, and I was in a hurry to get the pruning completed so as not slow the construction of a block retaining wall upon his return. I was wearing gloves that had extra padding over the knuckles…
Reactive Arthritis Usually Goes Away
Most people who get reactive arthritis return to normal in less than a yearin fact, 50% of people experience symptoms for 6 months or less.2 These cases may require medical care or may just warrant monitoring by doctors. Either way, these cases usually resolve on their own.
About 25% of people have symptoms that last beyond one year.4 These people are said to have chronic reactive arthritis or chronic spondyloarthritis, and they may require long-term treatment.
Read Also: Is Eating Tomatoes Bad For Arthritis
Counseling And Other Support
Health care team
Any major disturbance in your lifesuch as illness or chronic painmay make you feel anxious, depressed, angry or even hopeless.
This is your first place to turn for help. The team includes your doctor and a nurse. It may also include an occupational therapist or a physical therapist, a social worker, counselor, psychologist and a pharmacist.
Talk to the members of the team about ways to cope with pain. They may be able to help you find services in your area. Dont be afraid to suggest to your doctor a pain management idea of your own or one from this program. You know yourself and your pain better than anyone.
Counseling
Many people become depressed when they have severe pain. Some people feel so bad they cannot sleep or eat. In these cases, therapy or counseling may help.
Some people are afraid to admit they need help. They believe that others will think they are crazy if they talk to a professional about their problems. But its smart to get help when you need it. If you have the symptoms of depressionpoor sleep, changes in appetite, crying, sad thoughtstalk with your doctor.
Some psychologists or counselors are specially trained to work with the emotional side of chronic health problems like arthritis. These people can also teach you how to manage stress. Pain is stressful. If you have increased stress, you may feel more pain. So learning to manage stress can also help you manage your pain.
Support groups