A medical condition characterized by inflammation of the joints, which results in pain and difficulty moving. Any part of your body can become inflamed or painful from arthritis.
Some rheumatic conditions can result in debilitating, even life-threatening complications or may affect other parts of the body including the muscles, bones, and internal organs.A rheumatism of the joints, which could be any of a variety of disorders marked by inflammation, degeneration, or metabolic derangement of the connective tissue structures of the body.
Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis and generally affects elderly patients. Some forms of arthritis can affect people at a very early age. In many forms of arthritis, the inflammation does not go away as it should. Instead, it becomes part of the problem, damaging healthy tissues of the body.
There are more than 100 different kinds of arthritis that collectively affect nearly 46 million adults and 300,000 children in America alone. These diseases affect not only the joints but also other connective tissues of the body, including muscles, tendons and ligaments, as well as the protective covering of internal organs. The causes of arthritis depend on the form of arthritis.
A joint disease that can cause joint pain, swelling, stiffness and/or redness of the skin over the joint. Arthritis is classified as one of the rheumatic diseases. As we age, our joint tissues become less resilient to wear and tear and start to degenerate manifesting as swelling, pain, and oftentimes, loss of mobility of joints. Arthritis affects the movements you rely on for everyday activities. Arthritis is usually chronic. This means that it can last on and off for a lifetime. Changes occur in both joint soft tissues and the opposing bones, a condition called osteoarthritis.
Normally, inflammation is the way the body responds to an injury or to the presence of disease agents, such as viruses or bacteria. The cause of rheumatoid arthritis is unknown. The disease in its juvenile form often stops progressing within 10 years, but the damage may be permanent and cause further deterioration of the joints. In many people, the onset of osteoarthritis is gradual and has no serious debilitating effect in the beginning, although it can change the shape and size of bones.