Arthritis Specialist

What is arthritis?

Arthritis is a disease of the joints that causes chronic pain, swelling, and stiffness. There are over 100 types of arthritis, including rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, gout, and septic arthritis.

Many forms of arthritis are rare. However, the most common type of arthritis, osteoarthritis, is a condition that affects millions of Americans.

What is osteoarthritis?

Osteoarthritis is a degenerative form of arthritis, which means the cause is wear-and-tear over the years.

Your joints all contain two or more bones that end in the joint. To stop the bones rubbing against one another, there’s a layer of tough, slippery material called cartilage that covers the ends of each bone.

Cartilage gradually wears down, so as you reach middle or older age, it might be so thin that the ends of the bones start coming together. The friction they create causes inflammation in your tissues, which in turn leads to pain, swelling, and stiffness. Joints that have osteoarthritis continue to worsen over time, causing increasing pain. Your joints might start to twist out of shape, especially your fingers. You might also find it increasingly hard to move easily.

Isn’t arthritis easy to diagnose?

Diagnosing arthritis might seem like a simple process, as the symptoms are a clear indication of the disease. However, there are additional issues that musculoskeletal (MSK) ultrasound can be invaluable in addressing.

It’s vital to correctly diagnose the type of arthritis you have. With so many types, it might not be clear which kind you have. This matters because treatments vary for the different kinds of arthritis.

For instance, the inflammatory rheumatoid arthritis can benefit from treatment with disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs), whereas these medications would be no help for a degenerative form of the disease like osteoarthritis.

What diagnostic problems might arthritis cause?

It can be hard to see sufficient detail of the extent and type of joint damage on diagnostic imaging. That means crucial information could be missing that could affect the success of your treatment plan.

An example of this is articular erosion, which is a symptom of several forms of arthritis. However, bone erosion displays specific traits in rheumatoid arthritis that are lacking in other types of arthritis.

MSK ultrasound can detect these traits, enabling both a positive diagnosis and ensuring your doctor knows exactly the extent of the damage in your joints.

To take advantage of these exceptional diagnostic facilities, call Orthopedic Ultrasound, Inc. today or book an appointment online.