Early Detection of Arthritis is Essential

Arthritis Stiffness in the joints is a common condition that increases with aging. When the stiffness worsens to the point of being painful, arthritis may be the diagnosis. Arthritis is breakdown of normal cartilage caused by either excessive joint wear and tear or from an autoimmune disease called rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatoid arthritis is a disease […]

Stiffness in the joints is a common condition that increases with aging. When the stiffness worsens to the point of being painful, arthritis may be the diagnosis.

Arthritis is breakdown of normal cartilage caused by either excessive joint wear and tear or from an autoimmune disease called rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatoid arthritis is a disease where the body is actually fighting itself. This is what the term autoimmune means.

Rheumatoid arthritis is usually occurs on both sides of the body. This means it occurs in both hands, both knees, etc. In contrast, the other form of arthritis, called degenerative arthritis, will usually occur on one side. This form of arthritis is chiefly due to wear and tear or repetitive injury to the same joint or joints.

Although cartilage will heal to a degree, it simply will not heal as well as muscle or skin. The good news is that with proper care and supervised rehabilitative exercises, the surrounding support tissues can be strengthened to compensate for many of these joint disorders.

As cartilage continues to be won down, the joint has to more difficulty functioning. A simple analogy to this is to go loosen the hinges on a door and see how poorly it opens and closes. Even if the swelling could be entirely removed from a very arthritic joint, the lack of proper joint motion would cause so much additional stress to the joint that the swelling would quickly return.

It is important to reduce and control the swelling of arthritis as swelling itself contributes to the destruction of the cartilage. People who suffer from degenerative arthritis commonly experience swelling after activity. People with rheumatoid arthritis usually see swelling in the affected joint after rest, especially upon awakening.

It is important to use arthritic joints as disuse also leads to more arthritic changes; however, it is vital to not over stress an arthritic joint; otherwise, the swelling may significantly worsen. If you have either form of joint arthritis, your Doctor of Chiropractic should be consulted before you begin any exercise program or commit to any significant physically related lifestyle changes.

Chiropractors see many patients with degenerative arthritis. The spine is especially susceptible to this disorder. In fact, you may have the early signs of spinal degenerative arthritis but just have not noticed the symptoms yet. Simple palpation (feeling) of the vertebrae while the spine is slowly being moved can discover joints that do mot move as freely as other joints do. This is one finding that could lead to a diagnosis of degenerative arthritis. Another revealing procedure is a simple x‑ray. A x‑ray film can reveal the bony changes associated with either degenerative or rheumatic arthritis.

Your chiropractor can provide, prescribe, or recommend these therapies as needed. The application of spinal and or extremity manipulation may also be used to help you gain control over your arthritic condition. Nutritional counseling, exercise instruction, and lifestyle changes may additional considerations during your course of care.