Arthritis and Jingle Bell Run: Causes, Types, Treatments and Everything Else You Need to Know

According to a study, “The prevalence of arthritis will increase to 67 million people as they grow old. Those 67 million people make around 25% of the total adult population in the United States.”

In medical terminology, arthritis is regarded as an inflammation of the joint. However, the term is used to depict around 200 conditions affecting joints and the tissues that encompass the joint.

Arthritis impairs a person’s ability to perform everyday tasks. The most widely recognized type of joint inflammation is osteoarthritis. Other rheumatic conditions identified with arthritis are gout, rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia.

Pain, stiffness and swelling in and around joints in the body are some of the general symptoms associated with rheumatic conditions. Other types of arthritis — such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus (SLE) — can also affect multiple body organs. Some of the major factors behind the development of arthritis include injury, abnormal metabolism, genetic makeup, infections, and immune system dysfunction.

The Arthritis Foundation is organizing a Jingle Bell Run race for charity, bringing people from all walks of life together to champion arthritis research and resources. The funds collected through the event go to the research funded by the Arthritis Foundation to develop new medicines, treatments, and fellowships, and also for battling with the shortage of pain specialists and educational programs in the field. All events have a timed 5K race with a USA Track & Field-certified course.

What the Numbers Say:

A whopping 54.4 million adults in the US have been diagnosed with some form of arthritis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Of that, 23.7 million people claim reduced physical activity and ability one way or another.

According to the United States Bone and Joint Initiative (USBJI), “By, 2030, the prevalence of arthritis will increase to 67 million people as they grow old. Those 67 million people make around 25% of the total adult population in the United States.”

For those who think arthritis is a disease of older people, USBJI has another shocking revelation. “Two thirds of arthritis suffers are under the age of 65.”

Some more intriguing facts related to this severe pain condition: Osteoporosis affects 10 million Americans, with 19 million more (mostly women) at risk. One in two women and one in four men over the age of 50 will have an osteoporosis-related fracture, and 20% of hip fracture patients over age 50 will die within one year of their injury.

Causes

The causes of different types of arthritis vary significantly. For example, a few people might be hereditarily bound to build up certain ligament conditions. Similarly, past injury, contamination, smoking and physically requesting occupations can interface and cause additionally expand the danger of joint pain.

Some of the major possible causes of arthritis may include:

• Injury
• Infections
• Inheritance
• Immune system dysfunction
• Abnormal metabolism

Diet can also play a big role in joint pain. Animal-derived food sources and diets high in refined sugar can also exacerbate joint pain.  Gout is one such joint inflammation that is connected with food, as it is brought about by increased level of uric acid.

Risk Factors

Risk factors associated with arthritis can be divided into two categories: non-modifiable and modifiable risk factors.

Non-modifiable Arthritis Risk Factors:

• Age: The danger of growing most kinds of joint pain increases with age.
• Sex: It is more common in case of females to face most kinds of joint pain as 60 percent of patients facing joint pain are female. But when it comes to Gout, it is more common in men than women.
• Hereditary Elements: These factors are related to a higher risk of particular sorts of joint inflammation. Such as: Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and Ankylosing Spondylitis.

Modifiable Risk Factors:

• Overweight Conditions: Extra body weight adds to both the beginning and progression of knee osteoarthritis.
• Joint Wounds: Damage to a joint can add advance of osteoarthritis in that joint.
• Contamination: Numerous microbial operators can taint joints and trigger different types of joint pain.
• Occupation: Certain occupations that involve repeated knee (or joint) twisting and squatting are related to knee joint pain.

Different Types of Arthritis

There are around 200 types of arthritis and other musculoskeletal conditions categorized into seven main groups:

Inflammatory Arthritis: Although inflammation is a typical part of the body’s recuperating procedure, inflammatory arthritis happens in individuals for no evident explanation. Rheumatoid Arthritis, Reactive Arthritis, Ankylosing Spondylitis, and Psoriasis are some the examples of inflammatory arthritic conditions.

Degenerative or Mechanical Arthritis: Degenerative or mechanical joint inflammation alludes to conditions that harm the cartilage covering the bone ends. This kind of joint pain makes the cartilage become thinner and this undesired bone growth is called osteophytes or in general, is osteoarthritis.

Soft Tissue Musculoskeletal Pain: Soft tissue musculoskeletal pain is felt in tissues, rather than the joints and bones. The pain often affects a part of the body following injury or overuse, such as tennis elbow, and originates from the muscles or soft tissues supporting the joints.

Back Pain: Back pain can emerge from the muscles, nerves, tendons, bones, or joints. It may also originate from issues with organs inside the body.

Connective Tissue Disease (CTD): CTD includes joint pain and inflammation. This may happen in different tissues, including the skin, muscles, lungs, and kidneys. This can bring about different side effects other than painful joints. SLE, lupus, scleroderma and dermatomyositis are some of the examples of CTD.

Infectious Arthritis: A virus or fungus can sometimes cause this inflammation. The virus can spread through food poisoning or contamination, or can also get sexually transmitted.

Metabolic Arthritis: Uric acid builds up and accumulates in some people and forms needle-like crystals in the joint, resulting in sudden spikes of extreme joint pain or a gout attack. Gout can either come and go in episodes or become chronic if uric acid levels are not reduced. It commonly affects a single joint or a small number of joints, such as the big toe and hands.

Common Types of Arthritis:

• Rheumatoid Arthritis: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) happens when the body’s resistant framework assaults the tissues of the body and other explicitly connective tissues, prompting joint irritation, pain, and degeneration of the joint tissues. RA can show up at any age and is closely related with fatigue and stiffness after rest.
• Osteoarthritis: Osteoarthritis happens as the amount of cartilage tissue decreases all through life. Osteoarthritis is a typical degenerative joint ailment that influences the cartilage, joint covering and tendons, etc. The breakdown of these tissues, in the long run, prompts pain and joint stiffness. Generally, joints that go through heavy use, for example, hips, knees, hands, the spine, the base of the thumb are affected by osteoarthritis.
• Childhood Arthritis: This can cause various types of joint inflammation. Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA), which is also known as juvenile arthritis, is the most common type. Joint inflammation in childhood can make lasting harm to joints. And there is no fix for this condition.
• Gout: Gout is a rheumatic sickness that happens when uric acid levels begin to rise. It happens when the body creates an excess of uric acid. Gout causes severe pain in the joint with the region getting red, hot and swollen.
• Psoriatic Arthritis: Psoriatic arthritis frequently happens with a skin condition called psoriasis. It is thought to influence somewhere in the range of 0.3 and 1 percent of the populace in the U.S., and somewhere in the range of 6 and 42 percent for individuals with psoriasis. Most of the people who have psoriatic joint pain and psoriasis develop psoriasis before getting psoriatic joint pain. However, joint pain conditions may also happen before the skin condition shows up.
• Scleroderma: Scleroderma affects connective tissues in the body. A few kinds Scleroderma can also influence the inner organs too.
• Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE): SLE, also known as Lupus, is an immune system ailment where immune system produces antibodies to cells inside the body. This prompts inflammation and harms the tissue adversely. It can show up at any age, yet the beginning is probably is between the ages of 15 and 45 years. Lupus can influence the joints, skin, cerebrum, lungs, kidneys, veins, and different tissues. Side effects incorporate exhaustion, agony or expanding in joints, skin rashes, and fever.
• Septic Arthritis: Septic joint inflammation is a joint condition caused by bacterial or contagious contamination. It influences the bones and joints in knee and hip areas.
• Fibromyalgia: Fibromyalgia influences an expected 4 million grown-ups in the U.S which are around 2 percent of the populace. It begins during middle age or after, yet it can influence youngsters.
• Sjögren’s Syndrome: Sjögren’s disorder is an immune system related condition that occasionally happens along with RA and SLE. This causes dryness in the mouth and eyes, and also in the nose, throat, and skin.

Treatment

Arthritis and other musculoskeletal conditions are primarily long-term conditions. Musculoskeletal conditions share several risk factors with other noncommunicable diseases, such as inadequate physical activity, obesity, and poor nutrition.

The medical specialist will probably prescribe a course of exercise-based recuperations to assist you with dealing arthritis. Treatment for joint pain intends to control pain and limit joint harm.

• The treatment might involve: medications, physical or occupational therapy, joint assistive aids, weight loss, non-pharmacologic therapies, surgery including joint replacement, etc.
• Non-inflammatory types of arthritis, for example, osteoarthritis, are treated with pain-reducing meds, physical movement, and weight reduction if the individual is overweight.
• Natural remedies: A healthful, balanced diet with suitable exercise, abstaining from smoking, and not drinking liquor can help individuals with joint pain keep up their wellbeing.
• Self-management: Remaining physically dynamic, accomplishing and keeping up a healthy weight, getting customary registration with the specialist and shielding joints from pointless pressure are a great help.

The management of some musculoskeletal conditions often requires specialist and/or surgical care. However, many musculoskeletal conditions can be managed in primary care through a combination of core non-pharmacologic interventions.

It’s important to target many links in the pain chain, from the disease itself to your sleep, diet and stress levels. That’s what we, at EPIC Health, do.

Our team of board certified doctors and healthcare professionals aims to provide you the best in class arthritis pain management service to help you minimize the effects pain can have on your life.

EPIC Health are just a call away. Call us at 313-861-4400 in Detroit and 248-336-4000 in Ferndale to schedule your appointment today!

And, to support those in pain, it is time to enroll for Jingle Bell Run this year!