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“Surgical removal of the prostate can either be done with an open incision, as has been traditionally been done, or with a robotic approach.” Dr. Tewari and Dr, Schlegel, of the Dept. of Urology at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, present the two main type sof prostate cancer surgery, as well as explaining the advantages/disadvantages of each.

Most asthmatics once they discovered that they possess asthma after being diagnosed by their medical practitoners, they immediately evaluate the severity of their asthma and determine what are the effective types of asthma remedy that are most suitable and work best for them.

There are virtually hundreds if not thousands of different drugs that can be used to treat asthma, essentially there are two different distinct categories of medicine that can be prescribed: controller medicines and quick-fix medicines.

1) Controller Medicine

This type of asthma medicine will assist in controlling the inflammation in the lungs which will allow for easier breathing and less attacks. Some known controller medicines are Vanceril, Tilade, Intal, AeroBid and Accolate.

These types of asthma remedy are usually given in the form of an inhalant or a pill. If you experience frequent asthma attacks, or cough that can’t be control, your medical practitioner will probably instruct you to take this kind of asthma medication every day.

2) Quick-Fix Medicine

While this type of asthma medicine can be quite effective, it is normally not safe for daily use. Its use is intended to control an active asthma attack, or prevent an attack once symptoms have become apparent.

This type of asthma medicine is also sometimes known as a “rescue medicine”. Some of the known quick-fix medicines are Albuterol, Atrovent and Prednisone. This type of asthma medicine can be prescribed as a liquid, a pill and as an inhalant.

3) Other alternate asthma medicines

There is also another group of medicines that are used to treat asthma. There are types of asthma remedy known as a combination medicine. Combination medicines contain both a controller medicine and a quick-relief medicine in the same inhaler.

In the recent past, an inhaler that has been approved that allows the user to adjust the amount of medication that is being administered so it can be changed according to a person’s condition.

Some common side effects of asthma medicine

Causing some side effects when consuming medication are common, and an asthma medicine is no exception. While most people are able to receive asthma treatment free of unwanted side effects, there have been some side effects reported by those using an asthma medicine.

Some of the common side effects reported are

#1 headache

#2 voice changes

#3 sore throat

#4 swollen glands in the neck

#5 runny nose

#6 hoarseness and congestion.

If you experience the above side effects as the result of taking an asthma medicine, be sure to inform your doctor immediately.

However, with the help of an asthma medicine, many asthma sufferers are able to lead full, active lives that are productive. While not all sufferers will experience the same level of control over their asthma, using an asthma medicine can greatly improve their quality of life.

At most of the times, your asthma remedy will be very important to you. You won’t want to leave your home once you have your asthma medication without it. Don’t suffer anymore and make sure you get the asthma medication that you need as soon as possible!

Just remember, you are not destiny to suffer from this dreadful disease as most asthma medication can free yourself from asthma attacks thus saving your life. However. you should never add to, or alter any component of your current asthma treatment without first consulting your physician.

However, many asthmatics sometimes tend to forget that although they are taking proper and effective asthma medications, but without a proper asthma recovery system, there will not be much asthma free lifestyle to hope no matter how much knowledge you have with regards to the medications.

Apply this knowledge in your medication together with an effective asthma recovery system – enjoy your life once again.

Asthma is an illness where irritants cause inflammation of the bronchial tubes, as they become very sensitive, and thus making it difficult to breath. Contraction of the muscles around the wind pipe can be a result of this inflammation. The inflammation can also cause excessive mucus in the air passage as well as swelling of the lining may occur if its an airway inflammation.

Age is not a factor as far as asthma is concerned though it’s notable that around 50 percent of the cases initiate in children below the age of 10. And among these children around 65 percent are boys compared to only 35 percent girls. It is one of the chief culprits as far as respiratory illness among teenagers and children are concerned. Though its observed that the condition may improve with age. 17 million American citizens are asthma patients according to estimation.

Asthma is a lung disease which can be reversed either with treatment or it may heal spontaneously. Obstruction or constriction of the airway is the characteristics of Asthma. Lack of breathe called dyspnea and mild wheezing constitute the moderate symptoms of asthma while fatal respiratory failures are the grave symptom. The mild symptoms may occur before a serious attack.

People suffering from asthma face difficulty breathing out but can breathe in without any problem. During inhalation the diaphragm lowers pushing the ribs out and thus enlarging the lungs to let air around any blockage. But during exhalation when the rib cage closes in, the diaphragm moves up obstructing the air from moving around the blockage.

Two types of asthma

Intrinsic asthma and extrinsic asthma are the two types of asthma. When allergy to some kind of external material causes asthma its called extrinsic. And when an obvious external agent is not identifiable it is called intrinsic asthma.

Substances like dust, pollens, dander, food, molds, feather pillows, some types of food additives etc may cause spontaneous allergic reaction in some children which may be a beginning of extrinsic asthma. It is a hereditary disorder called atopy where the body has an inclination for allergic reactions.

An intrinsic asthma usually follows a serious respiratory infection to which no external allergen can be associated. An intrinsic asthma condition may worsen due to emotional stress, changes in temperature or humidity, fatigue, irritants, exposure to fumes and gases etc. some people may be patients of intrinsic as well as extrinsic asthma.

All asthma attacks are not of the same degree. The oxygen supply to the critical organs may get severely affected due to closing of the airways in a serious asthma attack. This may lead to a medical emergency condition. Severe asthma attacks are known to be the reason for many deaths. An asthma attack gives a person a sensation similar to drowning.

Actions like medication or other remedies can be used to prevent an asthma attack if the asthma symptoms and its warning signs are learnt.

There may be long phases of time when an asthma patient either shows very few and feeble symptoms of asthma or doesn’t show any at all. But asthma attacks can also be seen to last for prolonged periods.

The cough may sound dry and stretched during a severe attack. A a thick mucus is expectorated as the attack abates. Small children don’t produce the mucus after an attack. The breathing is normal between severe attacks.

In symptomatic asthma it is typical for the breathing sound to get reduced. Also forced exhalation for long periods is typical of air passage blockage. Lung hyperinflation is usually very common in children. Tachypnea, tachycardia and diaphoresis may coincide with severe attack. The patient may not be able to speak without pausing to catch a breath after every few words. Initial signs of respiratory failure are lethargy, confusion and darkening (purple or blue) of the skin due to lack of oxygen called as Cyanosis.

Possible asthma remedies

Various drugs like nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and aspirin may initiate an asthma attack. Even chemicals like Tartazine (yellow food dye) can cause an asthma attack. Heavy work and exercise may cause huge loss of moisture and heat in the upper airways. This may be followed by bronchospasm leading to exercise induced attack. Even exercise can be an attack initiator.

When treating severe asthma patients the target is to address the symptoms like coughing, wheezing, inflammation, airway swelling, lack of breath and lower them while an attempt is made to increase the pulmonary ventilation. Following a severe attack the treatment usually is focused on addressing the initiating factors like the irritants or the allergens in the environment.

In a process similar to vaccination, asthma may be treated by injecting the patient with limited amount of the antigen causing the attack when the cause of the asthma is identified as a particular toxin, bacterium, virus or other substance foreign to the body. This way the response of the immune system to the antigen is brought under control.

There are many types of heart disease, but this article will explore five types of heart disease that are common to happen. Hopefully, this article can add your knowledge concerning this leading cause of death disease.

#1 congenital heart disease

There is a fallacy of thinking that many people do when they believe that all heart disease is brought about by outside factors or that it needs some periods of time for heart disease to build up. This is, of course, not true as one of the most common types of heart disease is congenital heart disease.

The term congenital or hereditary heart disease refers to heart disease which is passed down through the family, and this is considered as being a congenital type of heart disease as it is principally inevitable and unpreventable. If you have an account of early heart disease in your family then you also are at danger for congenital heart disease.

The most first-degree family members that you have who have endured from heart disease, such as your mother, father, brother, sister and so on, in particular those who experienced it at a younger age, the higher your risk of getting it as well.

Although congenital heart disease can be caused by many factors, some of them are actually preventable. For example if heart disease is clustering in your family, then it may just be because of the way that your family lives, including unhealthy practices such as poor diet, little or no exercise, and smoking. All of these aspects can contribute to heart disease and can create the sequence of congenital heart disease.

# 2 congestive heart failure

Congestive heart failure is when the heart does not pump adequate blood to the other organs in the body. Congestive heart failure can often result from heart disease and constricted arteries. Congestive heart failure results in a heart which works a lot less efficiently than it should and can make further problems. Symptoms regularly consist of swelling and edema, shortness of breath, and kidney problems which in turn can lead to mysterious weight gain. Even elevated blood pressure and alcohol abuse can lead to congestive heart failure.

A patient may be examined for congestive heart failure if they have suffered from heart disease in the past, are alcoholic, have a family history of heart problems or show one or all of the symptoms that are caused by congestive heart failure. There are choices of examinations that aid a doctor in diagnosing this heart crisis. Treatment should begin without delay, starting with changes to diet and exercise, as patients should abolish salt from the diet altogether and sternly limit their fluid intake. Further treatment should be done by a professional.

#3 coronary heart disease

Coronary heart disease is the most frequent type of heart disease of all, and is also the leading reason of heart attacks. Coronary heart disease is a term that refers to damage to the heart that happens because its blood supply is decreased, and what happens here is that fatty deposits build up on the linings of the blood vessels that provide the heart muscles with blood, resulting in them narrowing. This narrowing decreases the blood supply to the heart muscles and causes pain that is identified as angina.

There are a few factors which are considered as being responsible causes of coronary heart disease. One in particular is high cholesterol that can increase fat concentration in your blood and create the building up of fatty deposits. Another one of the major factors of coronary heart disease is cigarette and tobacco smoke, as a smoker’s risk of getting heart disease is two times that of a nonsmoker, and studies have actually revealed that after five years of quitting smoking, the risk of developing heart disease is the same as that of someone who had never smoked in their life.

#4 pulmonary heart disease

Pulmonary heart disease is heart disease that comes from a lung, or pulmonary, disorder, or a complication of lung problems where the blood flow into the lungs is slowed or even totally blocked, resulting in increased pressure on the lungs. There are a number of different symptoms that typically come with pulmonary heart disease, such as shortness of breath, syncope, dyspnoea, and chest pain.

It is a state which is often misdiagnosed, and has frequently progressed to late stages by the time that it is actually correctly diagnosed. It has been previously chronic and untreatable with a poor survival rate. However, there are now numerous new treatments which are accessible which have extensively improved the overall prognosis of this disease.

#5 rheumatic heart disease

Rheumatic heart disease frequently derives from strep throat infections. This can be a reason for alarm for many because strep throat, while often preventable, is a quite common condition that affects many people who do not treat a minor sore throat infection in time. However, there is no reason to be because rheumatic heart disease that comes from strep throat is fairly rare. Actually, the sheer volume of cases of rheumatic heart disease has decreased considerably since the 1960′s.

If rheumatic fever, which happens due to chronic strep throat, is contracted and leads to rheumatic heart disease, the situation can be treated in a way that is much easier than the common treatments for other types of heart disease. This treatment usually involves taking cortisteroid anti-inflammatory medication to reverse any possible cardiac problems the fever might make. This does not rule out the risk for the requirement for more advanced treatment such as surgery, but it does signify the probability for a simple, yet effective treatment.

Diabetes mellitus is a group of metabolic diseases characterized by high blood sugar (glucose) levels, which result from defects in insulin secretion, or action, or both. Diabetes mellitus, commonly referred to as diabetes (as it will be in this article) was first identified as a disease associated with “sweet urine,” and excessive muscle loss in the ancient world.

Diabetes is a serious, lifelong condition that affects an estimated 20.8 million people. About 30 percent (6.2 million) do not know they have it. Each year, about 1.5 million people find out they have diabetes (1) and probably have had the disease for seven years before it was diagnosed.

Diabetes is a metabolic disorder affecting the way the body uses digested food for growth and energy. As a person eats, digestive juices break down the food into a simple sugar called glucose. Glucose is the main source of fuel for the body.

Types of Diabetes Mellitus:

Type 1 diabetes mellitus can occur at any age and is characterized by the marked and progressive inability of the pancreas to secrete insulin because of autoimmune destruction of the beta cells. It commonly occurs in children, with a fairly abrupt onset; however, newer antibody tests have allowed for the identification of more people with the new-onset adult form of type 1 diabetes mellitus called latent autoimmune diabetes of the adult (LADA).

Symptoms of type 1 diabetes:

· Increased thirst

· Increased urination

· Weight loss in spite of increased appetite

Type 2 diabetes mellitus was once called adult-onset diabetes. Now, because of the epidemic of obesity and inactivity in children, type 2 diabetes mellitus is occurring at younger and younger ages. Although type 2 diabetes mellitus typically affects individuals older than 40 years, it has been diagnosed in children as young as 2 years of age who have a family history of diabetes.

Symptoms of type 2 diabetes:

· Blurred vision

· Slow-healing infections

· Impotence in men

Genetic causes — Many people with type 2 diabetes have a family member with type 2 diabetes or conditions commonly associated with diabetes, such as high blood lipid levels, high blood pressure, or obesity. As an example, 39 percent of patients with type 2 diabetes have at least one parent with the disease. The lifetime risk that a first-degree relative (sister, brother, son, daughter) will develop diabetes is five to ten times higher than that of a person of a similar age and weight who has no family history of diabetes.

Complications:

People with diabetes may experience many serious, long-term complications. Some of these complications begin within months of the onset of diabetes, although most tend to develop after a few years. Most of the complications are progressive. The more tightly a person with diabetes is able to control the levels of sugar in the blood, the less likely it is that these complications will develop or become worse.

The eyes can be affected in several ways by diabetes mellitus. Diabetic retinopathy is one of the leading causes for irreversible blindness in the United States. This retinopathy can occur with either type I or type II diabetes mellitus, usually a decade or so after the onset of diabetes. Most persons with type I diabetes and many of those with type II diabetes develop some background (non-proliferative ) retinopathy. Proliferative retinopathy is more ominous and is more likely to occur when diabetes mellitus is poorly controlled.

www.preop.com Diabetes Patient Education Insulin is the hormone normally made in the pancreas that stimulates the flow of sugar – glucose – from the blood into the cells of the body. Glucose provides the cells with the energy they need to function. There are two main groups of insulins used in the treatment of diabetes human insulins and analog insulins, made by recombinant DNA technology. The concentration of most insulins available in the United States is 100 units per milliliter. A milliliter is equal to a cubic centimeter. All insulin syringes are graduated to match this insulin concentration. There are four categories of insulins depending on how quickly they start to work in the body after injection: * Very rapid acting insulin * Regular, or Rapid acting insulins * Intermediate acting insulins * Long acting insulin. Diabetes Patient Education * In addition, some insulins are marketed mixed together in different proportions to provide both rapid and long acting effects. Certain insulins can also be mixed together in the same syringe immediately prior to injection. A very rapid acting form of insulin called Lispro insulin is marketed under the trade name of Humalog. A second form of very rapid acting insulin is called Aspart and is marketed under the trade name Novolog. Humalog and Novolog are: * clear liquids. * They begin to work 10 minutes after injection, * peak at 1 hour after injection, * and last 3-4 hours in the body. Diabetes Patient Education * Humalog and …

Diabetes is a metabolic disease that is caused when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin to naturally turn sugars ingested into your body into energy. There are three major types of diabetes.

Type-1 Diabetes

This type of diabetes is an autoimmune disease – which is a result of the body’s failure to fight infection. As a result, the body begins to attack its own cells – in this case the beta cells in the pancreas that produce insulin. The body destroys the beta cells and no insulin is produced. People with type-1 diabetes have to take insulin shots daily in order to live.

The causes of type-1 diabetes are not known, however autoimmune, genetic, and environmental factors are believed to play a role in the onset of type-1 diabetes. This type of diabetes can affect people of any age, but most often is found in children and young adults. Symptoms of type-1 diabetes include increased thirst and urination, constant hunger, blurred vision, unexplained weight loss, and fatigue. An early diagnosis of type-1 diabetes is very important. Without daily injections of insulin, a person with this type of diabetes is at a high risk of lapsing into a diabetic coma, a life-threatening condition.

Type-2 Diabetes

This type of diabetes is the most common type. Type-2 diabetes usually affects adults who are obese, have a family history of diabetes, or have a previous history of gestational diabetes. Type-2 diabetes is not caused by the body’s inability to produce insulin, but rather by the body’s inability to use the insulin it creates effectively. This causes the blood to have higher levels of sugars than normal.

The symptoms of type-2 diabetes include frequent thirst and urination, nausea, unexplained weight loss, frequent infections, wounds and sores heal slowly, and fatigue.

This type of diabetes can often be prevented or controlled with certain lifestyle changes, including a healthy diet and regular exercise. Some patients need to take medications and many use natural treatments to effectively control the symptoms of type-2 diabetes.

Gestational Diabetes

This type of diabetes occurs in pregnant women and is caused by an intolerance to carbohydrates, which causes blood sugar levels to increase. It is very important for a woman who has gestational diabetes to control the disease in order to prevent the baby from being affected at birth. If the blood sugar levels in the pregnant woman are not under control, there is a risk of the baby going into insulin shock at birth.

Gestational diabetes risk factors include a family history of diabetes, increased maternal age, and obesity. While the symptoms of gestational diabetes usually disappear after the birth, there are significant risks to both the mother and child. The mother is at a higher risk of developing type-2 diabetes at a later time and the child is at a higher risk of being obese or developing diabetes later in life.

Preventing the Onset of Diabetes

Many times, diabetes can be prevented or the onset can be delayed.

All three types of diabetes can be controlled effectively by changes in your lifestyle. A healthy diet is the most important change – eating healthy foods on a normal schedule allows your body to perform the tasks necessary to sustain life. A healthy diet should consist of plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, fiber, and Omega-3 fatty acids. Once a person has been diagnosed with any type of diabetes, the intake of carbohydrates should be monitored and the intake of sugars should be greatly reduced.

Regular exercise is also important for your overall health. Keeping your body in good working order by keeping muscles toned and blood flowing correctly also helps your body to perform its normal tasks. It is important for early diagnosis and effective treatment of diabetes in order to avoid more serious illness and diseases that can be associated with diabetes such as heart disease and stroke. Diabetics are at a higher risk of developing many other diseases and illnesses, but the most important thing to remember is that if you work with your body, your body will work for you.

Cancer

The organs and tissues of the body are made up of tiny building blocks called cells. Cancer is a disease of these cells. Cells in different parts of the body may look and work differently but most reproduce themselves in the same way.

Cells are constantly becoming old and dying, and new cells are produced to replace them. Normally, cells divide in an orderly and controlled manner. If for some reason the process gets out of control, the cells carry on dividing, developing into a lump which is called a tumour.

Cancer is a term for diseases in which abnormal cells divide without control and can invade other tissues. Cancer cells can spread to other parts of the body through the blood and lymph systems.

Brain Cancer

A brain tumor is a group or clump of abnormally growing cells that can be found in or on the brain. They’re rare in kids Brain tumors can either start in the brain or spread there from another part of the body – some cancers that start in other parts of the body may have cells that travel to the brain and start growing there.

Lung Cancer

Lung cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world. It is a leading cause of cancer death in men and women in the United States. Cigarette smoking causes most lung cancers. The more cigarettes you smoke per day and the earlier you started smoking, the greater your risk of lung cancer. High levels of pollution, radiation and asbestos exposure may also increase risk. Cancer that forms in tissues of the lung, usually in the cells lining air passages. The two main types are small cell lung cancer and non-small cell lung cancer.

It usually spreads to different parts of the body more slowly than small cell lung cancer. Squamous cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma, and large cell carcinoma are three types of non-small cell lung cancer. Small cell lung cancer also called oat cell cancer, accounts for about 20% of all lung cancer.

Skin Cancer

Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. The two most common types are basal cell cancer and squamous cell cancer. They usually form on the head, face, neck, hands and arms. Another type of skin cancer, melanoma, is more dangerous but less common. Skin cancers are the fastest growing type of cancer in the United States. Skin cancer represents the most commonly diagnosed malignancy, surpassing lung, breast, colorectal and prostate cancer. Cancer that forms in tissues of the skin. There are several types of skin cancer. Skin cancer that forms in melanocytes (skin cells that make pigment) is called melanoma. Skin cancer that forms in basal cells (small, round cells in the base of the outer layer of skin) is called basal cell carcinoma

Ear Cancer

Cancer of the outer ear occurs chiefly in instances where the outer ear has been exposed for many years to direct sunlight. A small and at first painless ulcer, with a dry scab covering it, that slowly enlarges and deepens may be a skin cancer. It is diagnosed by removing a small bit of tissue from the edge and examining it under a microscope.

Head And Neck Cancer

Tobacco is the most preventable cause of these deaths a lump in the neck Cancers that begin in the head or neck usually spread to lymph nodes in the neck before they spread elsewhere. A lump in the neck that lasts more than two weeks should be seen by a physician as soon as possible. Of course, not all lumps are cancer. But a lump (or lumps) in the neck can be the first sign of cancer of the mouth, throat, voice box (larynx), thyroid gland, or of certain lymphomas or blood cancers. Such lumps are generally painless and continue to enlarge steadily.

Arthritis covers a broad spectrum of disease. To many, the term arthritis means pain and inflammation of the joints – but, arthritis is a much more complex medical condition. The term arthritis comes from the Latin phrase, “arth” meaning joint and “it is” meaning inflammation. There are over 100 illnesses associated with the term arthritis. Arthritis can range from something as simple as tendonitis to something as chronic as rheumatoid arthritis.

Three Most Common Types of Arthritis

Osteoarthritis – the most common type of arthritis. This degenerative joint disease affects over 16 million Americans. This form of arthritis is caused when the cartilage surrounding the ends of the bones begins to degenerate and the joints are no longer cushioned. This caused the joints to rub together and in severe cases, you can hear the bones grating against one another. At the onset of osteoarthritis, the symptoms are usually mild and consist of pain and stiffness of the joints. As the disease progresses, inflammation and loss of motion can occur. In some severe cases, deformity can occur if the grinding joints wear one side of the joint more than the other.

Rheumatoid arthritis – This is the second most common type of arthritis and the most severe. Symptoms usually begin appearing between the ages of 25 and 50 – however, children and senior citizens can experience the onset of this disease. Rheumatoid arthritis is the most common type of inflammatory arthritis. Rheumatoid arthritis is considered an autoimmune disease because factors other than wear and tear of cartilage can cause the disease and the disease can affect other organs, such as the eyes, lungs, and heart.

Rheumatoid arthritis usually affects the joints on both sides of the body – for instance, both hands will be affected, both wrists will be affected, and both legs will be affected. The most common symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are pain, stiffness, swelling, redness of the skin, fatigue, weight loss, and low-grade fever. Not only affecting the joints, rheumatoid arthritis can give you an overall feeling of sickness. Rheumatoid arthritis can be a debilitating disease, however patients can experience periods of remission in which the symptoms disappear and they can lead a normal life.

Fibromyalgia – This is a type of arthritis that does not directly affect the joints. Rather, the inflammation and pain affect the muscles, ligaments, tendons, and soft tissues under the skin. Many patients have tender spots under the skin that are painful when any type of pressure is applied. The symptoms for Fibromyalgia include deep muscle pain, fatigue, sleeplessness, and depression. Symptoms may come and go, but the disease is long term and chronic.

Other Types of Arthritis

Anklyosing Spondylitis – a chronic, inflammatory disease that affects the spine. The common symptoms include lower back pain and stiffness that lasts for more than a period of three months, difficulty sleeping, fatigue, weight loss, and low-grade fever.
Gout – this disease usually affects the joints of the big toe, but can extend to the ankles, heels, knees, wrists, fingers, and elbow. The common symptoms are tenderness, pain, redness, warmth, and swelling of the affected joint.
Infectious Arthritis – this type of arthritis is caused by an infection, and can be caused by both bacterial and viral infections. The onset of infectious arthritis is sudden and the symptoms include swelling of the joint, soreness, warmth, leakage of tissue fluid, fever, and chills.
Cervical arthritis – this type of arthritis affects the upper back and can cause pain in the neck and arms. Cervical arthritis is caused when the cartilage protecting the discs that support the neck deteriorate. The most common symptom of cervical arthritis is chronic neck pain, but can include loss of balance, headaches, muscle weakness, and stiffness.
Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis – this inflammatory arthritis affects children. The most common symptoms of Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis are swelling, pain, and stiffness in joints. The symptoms are usually worse in children upon waking in the morning and after a nap. There is no known reason for the onset of arthritis in children and, unlike rheumatoid arthritis in adults, children sometimes outgrow the disease and the symptoms disappear.

These are just some of the many types of arthritis. In general terms, arthritis is any disease that involves inflammation – swelling and pain of the joints or muscles. If you suspect that you suffer from arthritis, you should consult your physician to determine the type of arthritis and learn what treatments are available.

Arthritis is a disease that causes pain and loss of movement of the joints. Joint pain is referred to as arthralgia. Arthritis is the leading cause of disability in people over the age of 55. The causes of arthritis depend on the form of arthritis. Causes include injury (leading to osteoarthritis), abnormal metabolism (such as gout and pseudogout), inheritance, infections, and for unclear reasons (such as rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus). There are many forms of arthritis .There are about 200 different kinds of arthritis. The most common type is osteoarthritis (or degenerative arthritis), where the cartilage that protects the bones gets worn away. This makes joints stiff, painful and creaky. About 5 million people in the UK have osteoarthritis. OA is a chronic degenerative arthropathy that frequently leads to chronic pain and disability. With the aging of our population, this condition is becoming increasing prevalent and its treatment increasingly financially burdensome. Using radiographic criteria, the distal and proximal interphalangeal joints of the hand have been identified as the joints most commonly affected by OA, but they are the least likely to be symptomatic. Age is the most consistently identified risk factor for OA, regardless of the joint being studied. Prevalence rates for both radiographic OA and, to a lesser extent, symptomatic OA rise steeply after age 50 in men and age 40 in women. Occupation-related repetitive injury and physical trauma contribute to the development of secondary (non-idiopathic) OA, sometimes occurring in joints that are not affected by primary (idiopathic) OA, such as the metacarpophalangeal joints, wrists and ankles.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is traditionally considered a chronic, inflammatory autoimmune disorder. Rheumatoid arthritis occurs when the body’s defence mechanisms go into action when there’s no threat and start attacking the joints and sometimes other parts of the body. RA affects 2.1 million Americans, or about 1% of the adult population in the United States. This disease is 2 to 3 times more common in women than in men, and generally affects people between the ages of 20 and 50. However, young children can develop a form of RA called juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. Two of the 100 types of arthritis are rheumatoid arthritis and lupus. There are specific symptoms, distinguishing characteristics, as well as overlapping symptoms associated with rheumatoid arthritis and lupus. Rheumatoid arthritis is an additive polyarthritis, with the sequential addition of involved joints, in contrast to the migratory or evanescent arthritis of systemic lupus erythematosus or the episodic arthritis of gout. Occasionally, patients experience an explosive polyarticular onset occurring over 24 to 48 hours. Morning stiffness, persisting more than one hour but often lasting several hours, may be a feature of any inflammatory arthritis but is especially characteristic of rheumatoid arthritis. Its duration is a useful gauge of the inflammatory activity of the disease.

Psoriatic arthritis is related to the skin condition psoriasis. It occurs more commonly in patients with tissue type HLA-B27. There are five clinical patterns of psoriatic arthritis. First is Asymmetrical mono- and oligoarticular arthritis (30-50% of cases) is the most common presentation of psoriatic arthritis. Second is symmetrical polyarticular arthritis (30-50% of cases) is ultimately the most common form of psoriatic arthritis. Third is distal interphalangeal (DIP) joint involvement (25% of cases) is nearly always associated with nail manifestationsm. Fourth is Arthritis mutilans is affects less than 5% of patients and is a severe, deforming and destructive arthritis. This condition can progress over months or years causing severe joint damage. Fifth is Axial arthritis (30-35% of cases) may be different in character from ankylosing spondylitis, the prototypical HLA-B27-associated spondyloarthropathy. It may present as sacro-iliitis, which may be asymmetrical and asymptomatic, or spondylitis, which may occur without sacro-iliitis and may affect any level of the spine in “skip” fashion. Genetic factors appear to play an important role. There is a 70% concordance for psoriasis in monozygotic twins. There is a 50-fold increased risk of developing psoriatic arthritis in first-degree relatives of patients with the disease. Environmental factors have been implicated. Streptococcal infection can precipitate the development of guttate psoriasis. HIV infection can present with both psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, as well as worsen existing disease.

Gout is one of the most painful types of arthritis. Gout was once incorrectly thought to be a disease of the rich and famous, caused by consuming too much rich food and fine wine. Gout is a disease due to a congenital disorder of uric acid metabolism. Uric acid is produced when purines are broken down by enzymes in the liver. Purines can be generated by the body itself (via the breakdown of cells in normal cellular turnover) or can be ingested in purine-rich foods (e.g. seafood, beer). Gout usually attacks the big toe (approximately 75% of first attacks), however it can also affect other joints such as the ankle, heel, instep, knee, wrist, elbow, fingers, and spine. In some cases the condition may appear in the joints of the small toes which have become immobile due to impact injury earlier in life, causing poor blood circulation that leads to gout. Chronic gout can lead to deposits of hard lumps of uric acid in and around the joints, decreased kidney function, and kidney stones. An acute attack of gout is a highly inflammatory arthritis often with intense swelling, redness and warmth surrounding the joint. The inflammatory component is so intense, an acute attack of gout is often mistaken for a bacterial cellulitis. Gout is mainly treated with anti-inflammatory drugs. Corticosteroids (also called steroids), may be prescribed for people who cannot take NSAIDs. Steroids also work by decreasing inflammation. Steroids can be injected into the affected joint or given as pills. Colchicine is often used to treat gout and usually begins working within a few hours of taking it.

Septic arthritis also known is Pyogenic arthritis. Septic arthritis is infection, usually bacterial, in the joint cavity. Septic arthritis usually affects just one joint, though occasionally it may occur in more than one joint at a time. It is the most dangerous form of acute arthritis. The joint cavity is usually a sterile space, with synovial fluid and cellular matter including a few white blood cells. Many different types of bacteria (germs) can cause septic arthritis. Infection with a bacterium called Staph. aureus is the most common cause. Septic arthritis is inflammation of a synovial membrane with purulent effusion into the joint capsule, usually due to bacterial infection. This disease entity also is referred to in the literature as bacterial, suppurative, purulent, or infectious arthritis. The most common bacterial isolates in native joints include gram-positive cocci, with S. aureus found in 40% to 50% of the cases. Septic arthritis is uncommon from age 3 to adolescence. Children with septic arthritis are more likely than adults to be infected with group B streptococcus and Haemophilus influenza. Young children and older adults are most likely to develop septic arthritis. As the population ages, doctors are finding that septic arthritis is becoming more common. Symptoms of septic arthritis occur suddenly and are characterized by severe pain, swelling in the affected joint along with acute pain. Chills and fever are also common symptoms. Chronic septic arthritis (which occurs less frequently) is caused by organisms such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Candida albicans. The knee and the hip are the most commonly infected joints.