How Arthritis Can Ruin Your Life

If you or someone you know has arthritis, you know how hard it can make your life.  Arthritis comes in many different types. In fact, there have been over 100 known forms of arthritis.  Arthritis is a group of many different conditions that all engage in damaging the joints of the body. 

Osteoarthritis

The most common form of arthritis is osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint disease that comes from excessive trauma to the joints, infection of the joints, or only by old age. It decreases the amount of cartilage in your bones.  When osteoarthritis attacks the cartilage, your bones try to repair themselves.  The bone then remodels itself, and in the process, a bone cyst forms. 

Symptoms of Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis has many symptoms that can easily send a warning flag your way.  If you experience any stiffness or pain moving your joints, you should consult your doctor because it may be an early sign of osteoarthritis.

The most common joints affected by osteoarthritis are the fingers, hip, spine, and knees.  If you feel like your fingertips are engorged but do not cause you any pain, do not just brush it off. Instead, see a doctor immediately.

Arthritis

Another form of arthritis is rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatoid arthritis causes severe inflammation of your joints.  It can also strike various other organs in your body, making your immune system unknowingly attack your body’s tissues.

The official term for this type of disease is “autoimmune,” where you have antibodies in your blood that target your body.  Generally, when your own immune system attacks itself, inflammation occurs. Luckily, while rheumatoid arthritis is still considered a chronic illness, many people claim to experience extended periods without symptoms. 

Symptoms of Rheumatoid Arthritis

The main symptom of rheumatoid arthritis is inflammation of any joint or organ. Other symptoms include lack of appetite, fatigue, low energy, fever, and stiffness of the joints. Many patients describe the stiffness as being most dominant in the morning hours. Joints may also become tender or red while your symptoms have flared up. 

Psoriatic Arthritis

Psoriatic arthritis (commonly known as psoriatic arthritis autoimmune disease or PSAAD) is known as one of the scariest forms of arthritis, along with rheumatoid arthritis, for the simple fact that the body ends up attacking itself to try to fight arthritis off. 

Symptoms of Psoriatic Arthritis

Psoriatic arthritis attacks your skin and joints.  Its name stems from psoriasis’s skin condition, affecting 4% of people in the United States.  The main symptoms of psoriatic arthritis include itchy, raised, reddish patches of skin. The patches may even become flaky or scaly.  Psoriasis more often affects the tips of your elbows, knees, scalp, or near the genitals. Most patients who claim to have inflamed joints paired with psoriasis are often diagnosed as having psoriatic arthritis.

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