If you are old enough to be reading this article, odds are that you already know at least a little bit about the disease known as arthritis. You probably know someone who suffers from it, or perhaps you yourself suffer from it. The general public is fairly knowledgeable about arthritis, as it is a disease that affects roughly 40 million people in the United States alone. Despite the public’s knowledge on the subject, I would wager that there are some things about arthritis that you didn’t know. Did you know that you can get it from a tick bite? Did you know that there are over 100 different types of arthritis that can affect your bones and joints? This article will hopefully shine some light on the subject and illuminate any information that you may have been unaware of. Like many words in the English language, the word arthritis can be traced back to Greek origins. The word arth means “joint”, and itis means “inflammation”. Clearly, you can understand that arthritis literally means the …show more content…
There are many ways to discern this, but the most reliable is to visit your doctor and have him examine you. Symptoms of arthritis include pain in the joints that is usually accompanied by stiffness or swelling in or around the joint. If this persists past two weeks, then you definitely need to go see your physician. Other signs of arthritis can be more subtle. If you begin having difficulty performing your everyday tasks, you may need to start being concerned. The pain inflicted by arthritis may not be persistent; it can come and go. And like sun-downing patients, arthritis can sometimes be more intense at certain times of the day - particularly in the early mornings when first waking up and at the end of the day before bed. This would be particularly noticeable for people who have a lot of physical activity in their daily schedules as by the end of the day their joints are literally worn out and