Frequently asked Questions
Q. Are all joint pains due to arthritis? What is the the difference between the two?
Q. What are the types of arthritis?
Q. Is the arthritis a disease only of old age?
Q. Does heredity have any significant role?
Q. How do we differentiate between main and common types of arthritis?
Q. What are the different modalities of treatment in these patients?
Q. Are there any preventive measures?
Q. There are many dietary misconceptions in arthritis. Please clarify.
Arthritis means inflammation of joints marked by pain and swelling of the joint. Simply pain in joints without swelling is not included in it.
Q. Are all joint pains due to arthritis? What is the the difference between the two?
As mentioned in the previous answer, simply pain in joint without swelling does not qualify to be arthritis. It is called arthralgia.
Q. What are the types of arthritis?
There are over a hundred types of arthritis recognized by now but mainly we can categorize these into 3 groups:
Inflammatory - in which there is soft swelling of the joint
e.g. Rheumatoid Arthritis, SLE, Ankles Spondylosis etc.
Degenerative - in which there is hard bony swelling e.g. Osteoarthritis
(OA).
Metabolic - in which there is firm nodular swelling e.g. Gout.
Q. Is the arthritis a disease only of old age?
No, this is not a disease restricted to older people. Of course he degenerative types of arthritis like OA is seen in middle and old age.
Q. Does heredity have any significant role?
Not in all Cases. A few types of arthritis like Ankylosing Spondylitis are hereditary in nature.
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Q. How do we differentiate between main and common types of arthritis?
It is done by clinical examination and laboratory tests. Various factors like type of joints involved, whether symmetrical or not, other parts of body are involved or not, morning stiffness are noted.
Q. Are there any laboratory investigations, which can help to diagnose and differentiate the type of arthritis?
Yes, various blood tests like ESR, Rheumatoid Factor, S. Uric Acid, Anti-nuclear Factor, VDRL, Australia Antigen,CRP, ASo titres, HLA-b27 Antigen are required as demanded by the clinical picture of the patient.
X-Rays of the joints involved and examination of the joint fluid is also required sometimes.
Q. What are the different modalities of treatment in these patients?
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) are the mainstay of therapy in acute stage. In addition, in certain specific types of disease, appropriate drugs are used to decrease uric acid levels allopurinol used in gout. physiotherapy is the often neglected but essential part of the treatment. In late stages corrective surgery and joint replacement surgery may be required.
Q. Are there any preventive measures?
Control of body weight is essential to reduce wear and tear of lower limb joints. Regular physical exercises and yoga definitely help in preventing degenerative diseases like OA.
Q. There are many dietary misconceptions in arthritis. Please clarify.
There is no specific dietary restriction except in certain types of arthritis as in Gout we tell the patient to avoid meat and alcohol.
Of course high calcium diet is advised to avoid osteoporosis.
