What Are The Different Kinds Of Arthritis

What Are The Different Kinds Of Arthritis – Although they have different causes and attack the feet in different ways, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis can cause similar symptoms, including joint pain affecting the feet.

Osteoarthritis, also known as degenerative joint disease, is the most common type of arthritis. This usually occurs in the load-bearing joints of the hips, knees, and spine. But it can also damage the fingers, thumb, neck, and big toe.

What Are The Different Kinds Of Arthritis

Osteoarthritis affects women more often than men. People 60 years of age and older have varying degrees of osteoarthritis. However, it is also diagnosed in people in their 20s and 30s.

Gout Vs. Rheumatoid Arthritis: What’s The Difference?

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic disease. This causes inflammation of the underlying joints and can lead to long-term joint damage that leads to chronic pain, loss of function, and disability.

RA is incurable and flare-ups occur spontaneously during disease activity. RA can also affect other organs in the body. However, studies show that early, aggressive treatment of RA can limit joint damage, prevent loss of motion, and reduce functional capacity and the possibility of surgery.

RA currently affects 1.3 million Americans and its cause is unknown. However, with the help of new medications, exercise, joint care techniques, and self-management, many people are living with RA and living happier, healthier, and more productive lives.

Both osteoarthritis and RA can make the joints in the feet very painful. If you’re worried that you have arthritis, don’t suffer! Make an appointment with your pediatrician today. If your wrist hurts, you may be wondering who is to blame. Here’s what you need to know.

Rheumatoid Arthritis Vs Osteoarthritis What Is The Difference?

You have pain in your wrist. At first, you may find it funny to sleep or get overly traumatized during a yoga class. But if the pain is persistent and depending on the specific combination of symptoms, you could have carpal tunnel, a form of arthritis, or something else.

However, for some people, this often does not happen. Having arthritis increases your risk of developing carpal tunnel, so you can have both conditions at the same time.

In this article, we will explain why arthritis can cause carpal tunnel and share information about carpal tunnel symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment.

Although both arthritis and carpal tunnel can affect the wrists, hands, and fingers, the causes of the symptoms are different.

Types Of Arthritis And Rheumatic Diseases

Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease in which your body’s immune system attacks the joints, causing inflammation, pain, and swelling. Other common symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis include:

Osteoarthritis is of the “wear-and-tear” type, which occurs when the cartilage in the joints wears down. Here are some other common osteoarthritis symptoms.

Carpal tunnel syndrome occurs when the main nerve in the hand, the median nerve, becomes compressed in the carpal tunnel, a narrow passageway on the palmar side of the wrist that contains the tendons that flex the fingers. hand.

The floor and sides of this several inches wide tunnel are formed by small carpal bones called carpal bones, which are connected by ligaments that cover the surface of the carpal tunnel. (The word carpal comes from the Latin carpus, meaning wrist.)

What’s The Difference Between Arthritis And Tendonitis?

Repetitive hand movements, such as when someone works on an assembly line, often contribute to carpal tunnel syndrome. With excessive movement, the tendons of the finger can become swollen or inflamed and compress the median nerve. According to a study, although it is believed that typing causes CTS, even heavy computer use does not cause it to develop.

Many health problems can cause this area to swell. Arthritis is one, but diabetes and thyroid disease are linked to carpal tunnel syndrome, as are the hormonal changes during pregnancy. Injuries such as wrist fractures can contribute to the onset of carpal tunnel syndrome.

“Carpal tunnel syndrome is very common when you have rheumatoid arthritis, especially rheumatoid arthritis in the wrist,” says Vinicius Dominguez, MD, a rheumatologist in Daytona Beach, Florida.

If you have rheumatoid arthritis, it affects your hands — studies show they are the most common site of RA in the upper body, and 75% of people with RA involve the wrist.

Pain Relief For Joints, Arthritis

Although its effects are usually not as severe as RA, even osteoarthritis (OA), a type of wear-and-tear arthritis, increases the risk of carpal tunnel. Arthritis in the wrist can cause swelling and changes to the bone that fills the carpal tunnel.

“The wrist is a very small area, and if it becomes inflamed for any reason, it can put pressure on a nerve,” says Robert Gotlin, MD, a sports and spine doctor in New York. , leading to carpal tunnel syndrome”. Professor of Rehabilitation and Orthopedic Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

Interestingly, carpal tunnel, like rheumatoid arthritis, affects three times more women than men, possibly because carpal tunnel in women is smaller than in men. The dominant hand is usually affected first and causes the most intense pain.

Like arthritis, carpal tunnel can develop with age; three-quarters of people develop symptoms between the ages of 40 and 70.

Types Of Arthritis: Rheumatoid, Psoriatic, Osteo And More

Fortunately, despite the similarities in the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome and arthritis, doctors usually have no trouble distinguishing the two conditions. It is best to have overlap between treatments for both conditions.

Dr. Gotlin says that once the carpal tunnel develops, it takes on a typical pattern. Some key signs that can help distinguish carpal tunnel from other types of arthritis include:

The median nerve provides sensation to these fingers as well as half of the ring finger (the little finger is usually not affected). It also strengthens certain muscles at the base of the toes. At first, the symptoms are insomnia and tremors, but as the condition worsens, they can become chronic.

It can cause you to drop out of school or be unable to perform everyday tasks. “The thumb side of the hand provides a precise grip, which is important when performing tasks like using a screwdriver or holding something carefully,” explains Dr. Gotlin. As carpal tunnel progresses, people may report that their fingers feel numb or swollen, even though there is no swelling. In the most severe cases, the muscles at the base of the toe are “totally atrophied,” meaning they shrink in size.

Rheumatoid Arthritis In The Hands: Symptoms And Treatments

Carpal tunnel is especially painful at night. Blood accumulates because your arm is not moving, causing the wrist to swell. Many people sleep with their wrists bent, which can cause more pain at night.

Carpal tunnel is another trick: in the early stages, people can often relieve symptoms by shaking hands (“signs of vibration” in medical parlance). “It gets the blood flowing again and reduces swelling, so the pain goes away,” says Dr. Gotlin.

Your healthcare provider can diagnose carpal tunnel by taking a medical history and doing a physical exam. He may touch the inside of your wrist to see if you feel pain or tingling (the Tinel test) or ask you to bend your knee for a minute to see if this is causing the symptoms or not (Falen test).

Lab tests and X-rays can be used to diagnose problems such as arthritis, diabetes, and fractures. Your doctor may also use electromyography (EMG), which measures the electrical activity of nerves, to help confirm the diagnosis of carpal tunnel.

Pdf) Comparison Between Major Types Of Arthritis Based On Diagnostic Ultrasonography

In most people, carpal tunnel syndrome gets worse over time, so early treatment is important. Ignoring symptoms can cause permanent nerve and muscle damage, which can lead to loss of sensation, hand strength, and even the ability to distinguish between hot and cold. It can also increase the need for surgery. Fortunately, many people have recovered from the first step, including:

If you’re diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome and arthritis, both conditions can be treated at the same time—and sometimes even the same treatment. For example, NSAIDs can help relieve pain from RA and arthritis, as well as carpal tunnel. So are corticosteroids. In addition to wrist mobility to relieve CTS symptoms, wearing a brace can provide rest and support for arthritis in the wrists, hands, and fingers.

When carpal tunnel symptoms are severe and/or do not respond to these conservative measures, surgery may be necessary. This is a very popular operation, with more than 400,000 cases performed each year.

An outpatient procedure called carpal tunnel release surgery involves making one or more small incisions in the wrist or palm and cutting (“release”) the ligaments that are compressing the carpal tunnel. “It’s no longer a tunnel, it’s more like a convertible – the roof is gone,” explains Dr Gotlin.

The 4 Most Common Types Of Arthritis

After surgery, the ligaments usually grow back together and create more space than before. Symptoms are usually relieved after surgery, but remain completely