All of the different arthritis conditions are known to affect the joints and musculoskeletal system, which can cause stiffness, pain, damage to the cartilage in the joint and inflammation. Cartilage is the living tissue that covers the ends of the bones that protect them as they rub together. Like the other organs in our body, cartilage too needs looking after. The chondrocytes die, they are replaced with new ones and the life cycle goes on.
When there is long time inflammation, cartilage cells are destroyed and die faster than the body’s ability to replace them. Cartilage cells are not sufficiently regenerated when there is injury or insufficient nutrition for regenerating new cells. Arthritis makes the joints to become weak and instable. A typical treatment of arthritis includes lifestyle changes and physical therapy. Health care providers use joint replacement surgery as their last resort, once they have tried all of the less intrusive interventions to try and relieve the discomfort.
There are two main categories that arthritis can be grouped into, these categories are based on the ‘generalized’ or ‘localized’ areas of the joints or body that have been affected and then they branch off into sub-categories. When the soft tissues that cover the bones or the joints are damaged it is considered as a localized condition and is also known as bursitis or tendonitis. One of the other sub-categories of localized conditions is known to affect maybe one or two joints, like the hip or knee. Generalized Conditions: The first sub-category for generalized conditions is for those that affect the muscle and soft tissue where there is no evidence of swelling or inflammation. This condition does not indicate joint damage.
The second sub-category of conditions includes conditions that involve inflammation that affects the entire body. Gout, Rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis are all related to this group. Some of the other generalized conditions are known to include: muscles or polymyositis, vasculitis and systemic lupus erythematosus.
An individual is capable of having more than just one arthritis type and it includes over one hundred different medical conditions that are known to affect roughly forty six million adults and three hundred thousand children within the United States. These conditions, though most common in adults over 60, mostly as osteoarthritis, can begin early on and even in infancy. The number of sufferers is on the increase at the same pace as the population of America.
America spends over 124 billion dollars every year on arthritis related problems. Maintaining the right weight, eating fresh fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin C and D are simple but effective measures to prevent and arrest osteoporosis, Consumption of calcium is very important, adults must consume about 1000-1500mg calcium every day, exercising daily is a must and one must avoid injuries that may damage the joints.
