Are You Aware That There Are Over 100 Types Of Arthritis
Arthritis pain is an all too common type of disease with over one hundred forms inflicting not only humans but animals too. Another misconception is that arthritis pain only afflicts the elderly, well that is not so, there are many cases of children having this damaging disease which afflicts the joints causing at best discomfort or at worst disfiguring and painful suffering.
The common thread that runs through all forms are that there is much pain, though patterns of arthritis pain may differ among arthridities (people suffering from arthritis) and their location. Some of the common warning signs of this disease include pain, swelling, stiffness, and difficulty in moving one or more joints. When some or any one of these symptoms persist for two weeks or more, it is necessary to consult a doctor for diagnosis and early treatment.
Osteoarthritis, for example, can feature pain that is worst at night, or following a period of rest. Rheumatoid arthritis will generally cause most pain in the morning and in its early stages. In the elderly as well as in children, pain may not be most pronounced; rather, there is inhibited movement or affected limbs may refuse to function.
Among the different types of arthritis are :
osteoarthritis
rheumatoid
septic
gout
psedudogout
juvenile arthritis
Still’s disease
Ankylosing spondylitis
The options for treating arthritis vary, depending on the type of arthritis, medications as well as arthroplasty.
As a last resort, doctors may even try out prosthetic joint replacement, which is highly effective and almost all patients are satisfied with its results.
The History of Arthritis
Arthritis goes back to about 4500 BC when the first known traces of it were noticed in humans; though there is evidence that ankle osteoarthritis had affected even dinosaurs. It has been also noted in the skeletal remains of Native Americans of Tennessee and some parts of what is now Olathe, Kansas.
Humans have been suffering from this affliction from as far back as three thousand BC where a mummy was discovered with obvious arthritic bone disfigurements. Apparently the ancients used the bark of the willow tree to relieve the discomfort. These days the common old garden variety aspirin has been used extensively to bestow relief to the extent of more than a trillion tablets being used....and rising.