Arthritis is a debilitating disease that can affect people of all ages. There are many different types of arthritis, including osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and psoriatic arthritis. The symptoms of these conditions vary widely, but they generally cause pain in the joints, stiffness in the morning, and swelling.
If you’re concerned you might have arthritis, the below signs may help you get clarity.
Joint Stiffness
If you are suffering from joint stiffness, you may experience pain in that area when trying to move or stretch it. Moving the joint and keeping it in certain positions can make it difficult. Consulting an orthopedic specialist can help determine the underlying cause of stiffness and guide appropriate treatment.
Stiffness differs from muscle soreness or spasms and tight muscles because joints are not muscles—they are part of the skeleton where two bones meet at a joint (like your elbow).
Joint stiffness occurs when too much tension is placed on the ligaments that hold together two bones within a joint. The tissue around these joints becomes inflamed due to an overabundance of this tension, causing inflammation and pain when moving those joints.
Redness, Warmth, and Swelling
If your joint is warm, swollen, and appears red, you may have arthritis. The pain associated with this condition is caused by inflammation in the joints. Inflammation occurs when the body’s immune system sends white blood cells to an area of injury or infection. These cells release chemicals that cause swelling, redness, and warmth around the joint.
This type of arthritis can be either acute or chronic, depending on how long it lasts and how severe it gets. Acute arthritis often occurs at one point due to an injury or illness like a flu virus. At the same time, chronic pain can last for months or even years without any identifiable trigger. Interventional procedures like a medial branch block could help with arthritic pain.
Cracking or Grinding When Bending Your Joints
When you move your joints, they might make a crackling sound. If the cracking is accompanied by pain and stiffness, you may have arthritis.
This kind of joint crepitus (cracking) is most common in the fingers, knees, and hips; however, it can occur in any joint in your body. The sound is caused by rubbing bone on bone or cartilage as you move.
Decreased Range of Motion
If you have decreased range of motion (ROM) in your joints, you may have arthritis. ROM is the distance you can move your joint through its full range of motion. A stiff joint is difficult to move and feels like it “stops” at a certain point. You may feel pain when trying to move or stiffness after activity.
If a joint feels stiff or limited in movement, it can signify arthritis. This can also happen with age-related changes in the bones and soft tissues inside the affected joint—even if you don’t have any symptoms of arthritis yet.
Morning Stiffness
Morning stiffness, also called morning muscle stiffness, occurs when you wake up and your muscles feel tight or stiff.
Morning stiffness happens because of poor circulation in the body. When you’re sleeping at night, and your body is at rest, it doesn’t have as much blood flowing through its veins as it does when you are awake. Due to this lack of blood flow, your muscles can become stiff when you first get out of bed in the morning.
Exercises such as walking or stretching help increase blood circulation and reduce morning stiffness by increasing blood flow to joints that may otherwise suffer from poor circulation overnight (for example, the hips). Try doing these exercises for five minutes every day before getting out of bed.
Conclusion
It’s not always easy to tell whether you have arthritis, especially if you’ve never had it. If you are experiencing any of the symptoms listed above, it’s worth seeing a doctor. They can do a few tests to help determine if you have arthritis and what type of treatment is best suited for your needs!