What is osteo-arthritis?
Osteoarthritis is a disease characterized by degeneration of cartilage and its underlying bone within a joint as well as bony overgrowth. The breakdown of these tissues eventually leads to pain and joint stiffness. The joints most commonly affected are the knees, hips, and those in the hands and spine. The specific causes of osteoarthritis are unknown, but are believed to be a result of both mechanical and molecular events in the affected joint. Disease onset is gradual and usually begins after the age of 40.
Symptoms of osteo-arthritis
* Pain, commonly in the hands, hips, knees, or feet, and sometimes in the spine. Pain usually is related to activity of the joint and is worse at the end of the day or after periods of activity. As the disease progresses, pain is present even during rest.
* Stiffness (lasting less than 1 hour) after periods of inactivity, such as in the morning after a night's sleep or after sitting for a long time.
* Limited joint motion.
* Tenderness and occasional swelling.
* Joint deformity (usually in later stages of osteoarthritis).
* Joint cracking or "creaking" (crepitus), often accompanied by pain. This creaking also may occur in a normal (nonarthritic) joint and is usually painless.
Osteoarthritis of the spine can also narrow the openings that make space for the spinal cord and for the nerves that branch off the spinal cord (spinal nerves). This is called spinal stenosis. It can lead to pressure on the spinal cord or spinal nerves. This pressure can cause pain, weakness, or numbness.
Symptoms of osteoarthritis range from minor to severe. Symptoms may depend on which joints are involved. If your weight-bearing joints (such as hips and knees) are affected, it often results in more problems than if you have osteoarthritis in non-weight-bearing joints, such as your fingers.
Usually, osteoarthritis is limited to one set of joints, such as both knees. But osteoarthritis may affect more than one location in the body (for example, the knees and hands). Osteoarthritis usually only causes symptoms in one or more joints. Symptoms that affect the whole body, such as fever, weight loss, or rash, are not seen in osteoarthritis.
As osteoarthritis becomes more severe, symptoms may include a total loss of function in the affected joints.
What is rheumatoid arthritis?
Arthritis is a general term that means inflammation in a joint. Joint inflammation is characterized by redness, warmth, swelling, and pain within the joint.
Rheumatoid arthritis is a type of chronic arthritis that typically occurs in joints on both sides of the body (such as hands, wrists, or knees). This symmetry helps distinguish rheumatoid arthritis from other types of arthritis.
In addition to affecting the joints, rheumatoid arthritis may occasionally affect the skin, eyes, lungs, heart, blood, or nerves.
What Are the Symptoms of Rheumatoid Arthritis?Symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis include:
* Joint pain and swelling
* Stiffness, especially in the morning or after sitting for long periods
* Fatigue
Rheumatoid arthritis affects everyone differently. For some, joint symptoms develop gradually over several years. In others, rheumatoid arthritis may progress rapidly and while other people may have rheumatoid arthritis for a limited period of time and then enter a period of remission.
Some homoeopathic remedies
Bryonia, recommends Ullman, to relieve joint pain and inflammation from rheumatoid arthritis if the pain is aggravated by the smallest movements and gets worse from continued movement of affected part. There may be a great deal of swelling, inflammation and redness with pains in the joint.
Rhus Toxicodendron (Rhus Tox) for pain that is worse when you first move the painful joint, and then gets better after continued movement. This is called the ‘rusty gate’ syndrome. Rhus Tox is indicated if rheumatoid arthritis pain is worse on the left side of the body rather than on the right. A person needing Rhus Tox, may feel stiffness in the joint which is aggravated by wet, cold weather. A warm heating pad or other warm application may be applied to the sore areas for soothing relief of rheumatoid arthritis symptoms.Use Ruta Gravolens (Ruta) if arthritis pain involves tendons and ligaments around the joint as well as pain in the joint, recommends Maesimund B. Panos, M.D. in her book, “Homeopathic Medicine at Home”. Ruta is indicated for arthritis in if you experience tenderness and a feeling of weakness in the joint, as though the leg or arm might give out when you try to bear weight with it. Ruta is also indicated if your arthritis pain is made worse during damp, chilly weather.
Ruta Gravolens (Ruta) if arthritis pain involves tendons and ligaments around the joint as well as pain in the joint, recommends Maesimund B. Panos, M.D. in her book, “Homeopathic Medicine at Home”. Ruta is indicated for arthritis in if you experience tenderness and a feeling of weakness in the joint, as though the leg or arm might give out when you try to bear weight with it. Ruta is also indicated if your arthritis pain is made worse during damp, chilly weather.
Apply Arnica oil externally to help reduce swelling and bruising of the surrounding tissue of the knee after over exertion. Ullma tell us this often helps the swelling associated with arthritis when someone has overdone exercise, walking or other activities requiring exertion. Massage into the knee as needed.
Rhododendron for tearing pains in the joint from gouty arthritis and rheumatism. The pain is often worse during hot weather and is almost always aggravated before a thunderstorm. This remedy often helps people whose arthritis pain is felt more keenly on the right side of the body.
Nux Vomica, if you experience crackling in the joints and your arthritis pain is accompanied by aching and bruised feeling in and around the joint.
Buy each of these remedies from your local health food store or in FDA approved homeopathic online pharmacies so you have them on hand in case you need more than one. The dose for any of the above remedies is one pill dissolved under the tongue. It may be repeated if necessary every half hour until pain is relieved. Then do not repeat again unless pain resumes. If after taking 4 doses you do not experience relief, another remedy may be indicated.
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