Arthritis can lead to further complications if the right
treatment is not adopted. Based on the nature of two major kinds of arthritis,
rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, treatment must be focused on reducing inflammation
or managing pain. Rheumatoid arthritis is a systemic inflammatory disease,
meaning there is inflammation throughout the whole body, not only in the joints.
The problem in rheumatic joints is, in fact, caused by inflammation of the
synovial membrane, the soft tissue found around the joint’s cartilage.
In rheumatoid
arthritis, abnormal immune responses produce continuous inflammation that can
lead to tissue destruction and loss of functionality. Some of the complications
may include; joint deterioration and pain, peripheral neuropathy, anemia,
fatigue, weakness, corneal damage, infections, osteoporosis, lung disease, and
vasculitis among others. It is imperative to treat the autoimmune disease
accordingly to prevent those degenerative complications. Some treatments
involve nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, disease-modifying anti-rheumatic
drugs, biologic response modifiers, and corticosteroids.
In
osteoarthritis, there is no impact on the rest of the body other than what
happens around the joints involved. Cartilage breaks down, letting the bones
rub together, causing stiffness, pain, and loss of movement. Symptoms usually
develop gradually and involve sore or stiff joints for inactivity or overuse,
stiffness after resting that goes away after movement, and pain that is worse
after activity.
There is
no cure for osteoarthritis, but there are medications to reduce and control
pain. Also lifestyle changes can be made, in addition to physical therapy to
help improve strength and function. Once pain impedes daily activities surgery
may be considered. Some of the surgical options include arthrodesis (fusing
bones to impede movement), arthroscopy (smoothing bone surfaces), hip resurfacing,
joint replacement, or osteotomy (bone shape correction). Staying physically
active and maintaining a healthy weight are key to coping with osteoarthritis,
inactivity can lead to stiffness and weak joints, and strong muscles protect joints.
There are
not many advantages of suffering osteoarthritis besides possible handicap
parking permits, but it seems agreeable that it is the lesser of two evils when
it is compared to rheumatoid arthritis. It turns out, most reasons patients
with rheumatoid arthritis en up hospitalized is because of cardiovascular
complications associated with the condition. It is increasingly evident that arthritis
must be approached as more than an inconvenience, so it is crucial to identify and properly treat rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis at the early stages to avoid reaching the condition's progressive form.
Sources:
Harvey, S. (2013, March 18). Rheumatoid Arthritis. Retrieved
November 5, 2014, from http://umm.edu/health/medical/reports/articles/rheumatoid-arthritis
Osteoarthritis. (2014, July 11). Retrieved November 5, 2014,
from http://www.arthritis.org/arthritis-facts/disease-center/osteoarthritis.php
Osteoarthritis - Surgery. (2013, October 17). Retrieved
November 5, 2014, from http://www.webmd.com/osteoarthritis/tc/osteoarthritis-surgery
Ruderman, E. (2008, August 15). How Do Symptoms Differ When
Comparing Osteoarthritis And Rheumatoid Arthritis? Retrieved November 5, 2014,
from http://abcnews.go.com/Health/PainArthritis/story?id=4569028
Mario, great post. I think that too often the public thinks of arthritis as an isolated condition. As you pointed out that is more of what osteoarthritis is. However there is another kind of arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, that can have many dangerous complications. I think it would be helpful if there was a push to educate the public on the difference between the two types of arthritis. That way when patients come to their doctor they can be more prepared for the severity of their individual condition, whether it is OA or rheumatoid arthritis.
ReplyDeleteJoel, I agree with your thoughts about increasing public awareness. I also looked into the kinds of arthritis and found that there are actually over 100 different, named arthritis conditions.
DeleteSource: http://www.healthline.com/health/arthritis#Overview1
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ReplyDeleteI really like how you explained the difference between Rheumatoid Arthritis and Osteoarthritis. We have discussed, pretty much every week, that maintaining a healthy lifestyle can prevent many diseases as well as help slow the development. It is crucial that people take all health issues seriously. Especially since osteoarthritis can lead to cardiovascular issues and most people don't think of that as being a possible side effect.
ReplyDeleteYour post comparing RA and OA was very interesting and insightful. I was surprised by the differences in whole body effects in these two commonly clumped together diseases. The long list of symptoms and other issues that come with RA make it so there is a lot more to consider in the disease compared to OA where it is mostly all joint focuses. My dad is a Rheumatologist who see's both of these types of patients in his work, he more commonly discusses people with RA than OA, and I wonder now if this is because of the wider ranges issues that are associated with RA over OA causing the medical intervention to be much higher for RA than OA.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the brief overview on the differences between the two types of arthritis, Mario! I know you mention the importance of maintaining a healthy weight and daily exercise, but it might be interesting to also include the effects of diet. I'm unsure as to whether or not diet would have a significant effect on RA, but I think a diet rich in Type II collagen would be beneficial to OA. My reasoning? OA mainly affects synovial joints, which are comprised primarily of Type II collagen and hyaline cartilage. Though this line of reasoning may seem sound, I don't know if the collagen would still be incorporated properly after encountering the digestive processes in the stomach.
ReplyDeleteYour comment intrigued me so I did some searching. Most sources either informally denounced the effectiveness of collagen supplements or claim to "TAKE 20 YEARS OF YOUR FACE IN 3 WEEKS." I did find one small primary research article that seemed to indicate collagen consumption can have beneficial effects on collagen-containing tissues. I'll paste a link below if you're curious about the details.
Deletehttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23949208
Mario, good overview of the two arthritic diseases! You mentioned the treatment of joint replacement for OA, and I have been thinking about this throughout the week because I see a lot of patients who receive joint replacements at the PT clinic I work in. The most common replacements are the knees and the hips. Generally, I see knee replacement patients as early as age 45, whereas hip patients are around 60 at the youngest. It would be interesting to look at when patients generally turn to joint replacement in the progression of their OA, taking into consideration age of onset and speed of progression.
ReplyDelete