How to recognize arthritis and how is it treated?

Arthritis is one of the most common diseases of the joints. When symptoms are mild and do not interfere with lifestyle, it often goes unnoticed. How to recognize arthritis before the symptoms become very pronounced and unpleasant?

If you feel pain and stiffness in your body or have difficulty moving, you may have arthritis. Most people ignore the first signs of this disease out of the belief that joint pain and stiffness are just consequences. some load, old injuries or signs of aging.

In this text, we will talk about how important recognizing arthritis in the early stages is for timely treatment and improvement of daily activities.

Find out how to recognize the first symptoms and how you can react to preserve the health of your joints.

What is arthritis?

Arthritis is inflammation or degeneration of one or more joints in our body. Joints are places where two bones meet, for example the elbow or knee. A swollen joint can become seriously compromised over time. Some forms of arthritis cause problems in other organs, so this disease should be detected in time. Medicine recognizes more than 100 types of arthritis.

The most common types of arthritis

• Rheumatoid Arthritis – An autoimmune disease when your body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy cells. In this case, it attacks the joints and causes chronic inflammation, damage to the joints and other organs.
• Osteoarthritis – This most common form of arthritis is the result of non-inflammatory processes. It is a degenerative joint disease that develops due to wear and tear of cartilage, leading to pain, stiffness and reduced mobility. It is often associated with aging or injury.
• Juvenile arthritis - A type of arthritis that occurs in children 16 years of age and younger. It can affect the joints, but also the skin, eyes and internal organs.
• Infectious arthritis – An infection that has spread from another part of the body to the joint. Infection with bacteria, viruses or fungi leads to sudden swelling, redness and pain in the joints.
• Psoriatic Arthritis – This type of arthritis affects people diagnosed with psoriasis. It causes pain, swelling and stiffness of the joints, very often accompanied by a skin rash.
• Gout - Gout is a painful type of arthritis that occurs when the body build up too much uric acid. It usually starts in the big toe.

Rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is one of the most common and severe forms of this disease. It's an autoimmune condition that starts when our immune system, whose role is to protect us, breaks down and starts attacking our body's tissues. The lining of the joints becomes inflamed, resulting in swollen, painful and red joints. It most often affects the small joints of the hands and feet, but later the large joints of the shoulders, hips and knees can also be involved in the disease.

Rheumatoid arthritis affects symmetrically on both sides of the body. It often affects both hands, both wrists, or both knees. This symmetry helps in diagnosis, because it differs from other types of arthritis.

Over time, rheumatoid arthritis attacks other body parts and systems, from the eyes to the heart, lungs, skin, blood vessels and more.

Rheumatoid arthritis is likely due to a combination of genetic and environmental factors, many of which are unknown. Variations in dozens of genes have been studied as risk factors. Most of these genes are known or suspected to be involved in the function of the immune system.

Nongenetic factors also play a role in the development of RA. Potential triggers can be changes in sex hormones (especially in women), occupational exposure to certain dust or fibers, and viral or bacterial infections.

Long-term smoking is a well-established risk factor for developing RA. It is also associated with more serious signs and symptoms in people who have the disease.

It should be remembered that rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, multisystemic disease with the most severe consequences on the movement system. The rule of quality clinical practice is to make a diagnosis in the pre-erosive phase and apply therapy on time.

Early diagnosis is established on the basis of targeted clinical, serological, immunogenetic and radiological work-up.

• Clinical - It is necessary to precisely determine the activity of the disease based on defined parameters.
• Serological – Rheumatoid factor and anti-citrulline antibodies (anti-CCP) are specific serological parameters.
• Genetic – The most significant genetic risk factors for RA are human leukocyte antigen (HLA) gene variations, particularly HLA-DRB1. Proteins produced from the HLA gene help the immune systemm system to distinguish the body's own proteins from proteins made by foreign invaders (viruses, bacteria).
• Radiological - Magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasound provide great opportunities for detecting pre-erosive changes on the bones (edema) and persistent synovitis (thickness, blood supply).

The early, curable stage of rheumatoid arthritis can be defined by a scientifically supported formula:

Damage= Intensity x Inflammation x Time

Joint damage in arthritis depends on three key factors: disease intensity, inflammation, and time. Stronger symptoms and more pronounced inflammation cause greater damage, and the longer the disease persists without treatment, the greater the likelihood of permanent joint deformities.

So, the combination of these factors determines the speed and severity of damage.

First symptoms of arthritis

The first symptoms of arthritis start out mild, but over time they become very unpleasant and serious if not detected at the right moment.

Early symptoms of RA

• Island
• Stiffness, most often in the morning
• Pain in joints
• Deformity of the joint
• Reduced mobility
• Redness and warmth of the skin around the joint
• Fatigue

RA can affect the skin as well as the joints

• Nodules – Hard lesions that appear on the skin around the joints.
• Vasculitis – Inflammation of blood vessels that causes skin changes.
• Nailholes - Indentations on the nails caused by vasculitis.
• Rash – The rash may be bruise-like, flat or raised and does not go away when pressed. It is most often localized on the knee or lower leg.

Unusual symptoms of RA

• Low temperature
• Dry, sensitive eyes
• Dry mouth, irritation or gum infection
• Short breath
• Low number of erythrocytes (anemia)
• Heart muscle damage

How to cure arthritis?

Although there is no cure for rheumatoid arthritis, early, aggressive treatment will help prevent disability and increase the chances of improvement.

The path to a successful outcome for arthritis sufferers is early diagnosis of the disease in the pre-erosive phase. This is the basic and realistic requirement of the modern approach to the patient.

In the initial clinical workup, the most important thing is for the doctor to determine the clinical and pathophysiological stage of RA. This involves identifying specific symptoms and changes, such as joint effusion, synovitis (inflammation of the synovial membrane), pannus (abnormal tissue) formation, bone edema, bone erosions, the distribution of arthritis and the level of inflammatory activity.

Without understanding these factors to assess the severity and progression of the disease, there is no adequate treatment and monitoring strategy.

Also, recognizing the factors helps in adjusting the therapeutic approach and setting clear treatment goals. In this way, the rheumatologist will develop the most optimal therapy plan, adapted to the specific needs of the patient.

The treatment of arthritis depends on the type and severity of the symptoms.

• Drugs - In addition to analgesics that will relieve pain, anti-inflammatory drugs that reduce inflammation and immunosuppressants such as methotrexate and leflunomide that reduce the activity of the immune system and slow down the progression of the disease are also used. Biologic drugs are included to target specific molecules in inflammation. These are options for the treatment of patients for whom other drugs have not worked.
• Physical therapy - To improve joint mobility, strengthen the muscles around them and reduce stiffness, physical therapy and exercises are indispensable.
• Changes in diet - A diet rich in omega 3 fatty acids, fish, seeds, and turmeric can also help alleviate symptoms. These anti-inflammatory foods are often very beneficial for RA sufferers.
• Compresses - Placing hot and cold compresses on inflamed joints can help with pain and inflammation.
• Orthopedic aids - Orthoses and crutches are sometimes necessary for easier movement of patients.
• Surgeries – Severe cases of RA sometimes require joint surgery or reconstruction.
• Alternative therapies - Acupuncture, massages and supplements such as turmeric or glucosamine certainly make RA patients feel better.

Natural remedy for rheumatoid arthritis and joint pain

There are natural remedies that you can try yourself at home