Arthritis
Arthritis is made up of two words, Artho- Joint. and Itis- inflammation. So Arthritis means Inflammation of the Joint / Joints. There are different forms of arthritis but the most commons are, Osteoarthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Psoritic Arthritis, and in certain form Gouty Arthritis.
Osteoarthritis:
Is degenerative joint disease, it is mostly caused due to trauma / injury to the joint, infection of the joint, and / or age.
Rheumatoid Arthritis:
Rheumatoid Arthritis is a form of autoimmune disease (Means body's immune system starts to attack body tissue.), The attack is not only directed to the joints but it may also effect other parts of the body. In rheumatoid arthritis most damage occurs to the joint lining and cartilages which eventually results in the erosion of the two opposite bones.
RA often affects major joints first, Like Knee joint heap joint, elbow joint, shoulder joint, then gradually it starts affecting the other joints of the body.
If RA is diagnosed earlier then joint damage can be prevented, but if it is not diagnosed then it can lead to the joint deformities, and then after certain time, only treatment available is joint replacement, and that is not for the long time, may be 5 or 10 years or may be 15 yrs maximum.
At present in India, for RA only symptomatic treatment is available. And as said earlier at the end joint replacement surgery is required.
Psoriatic Arthritis:
It is also a form of autoimmune disease, and mostly seen in psoriatic condition.
Gout / Gouty Arthritis:
Gouty Arthritis is a type of arthritis, characterized by sudden attack of pain with redness, warmth, and swelling in the affected joints. It usually attacks only one joint at a time. It usually starts with the big toe (But it doesn't mean that it only starts with the big toe only it may affect any toe.), and then gradually other toes will be involved. It usually occurs in the people with rich protein diet and who doesn't do regular exercises.
The pain and swelling in the Gout are caused due to uric acid crystals building up in the joints and leading to inflammation. The body normally forms uric acid when breaking down cells and proteins, releasing it into the bloodstream. The uric acid usually stays dissolved in the blood and ends up being flushed out by the kidneys,
if there is too much uric acid in the blood, called hyperuricemia or if the kidney can not get rid of it quickly, it may begin to form crystals that collect in the joints, even kidney skin, and other soft tissues.
Certain high protein food can make the body produce too much uric acid,triggering gout.
Beverages such as tea, coffee, cocoa, and especially alcohol in any form lead to extra water loss from the body, can cause an attack. Certain medicine can hamper ability to clear out uric acid, such as diuretics or water pills commonly given to control high blood pressure.
Finally sudden change in diet and weight gain or loss can also lead to gout.
Treatment:
There is no known cure for the rheumatoid or osteoarthritis. Treatment options very depending on the type of arthritis and include physical therapy, lifestyle changes which includes exercise and weight management, orthopaedic bracing and some symptomatic medicine. Joint replacement may be required in eroding form of arthritis.
In Following Article will write about different types of Arthritis as par AYURVEDA. And there treatment.
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