Introduction
Arthritis means inflammation or degenerative change in one or more joints, causing pain, stiffness, swelling, and reduced movement. Knees, hips, hands, and shoulders are commonly affected, but almost any joint can be involved.
There are many types. Osteoarthritis reflects cartilage wear and mechanical stress. Inflammatory forms—such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, gout, and lupus-related joint disease—involve immune or crystal-driven inflammation. Infection and prior injury can also trigger joint damage.
Classic clues include morning stiffness, pain with stairs or grip, swelling, reduced range of motion, and sometimes fatigue or flu-like feelings in systemic inflammatory disease. Finger nodules, nail changes, or skin psoriasis can point to specific subtypes.
Early evaluation reduces long-term joint damage. Care combines education, exercise, medicines, joint protection, and—when needed—injections or surgery. This page is general education; treatment must match the arthritis type and your overall health.
Overview
Arthritis is a leading cause of pain and disability worldwide. Osteoarthritis is the most common pattern in middle-aged and older adults; rheumatoid and other inflammatory arthritides can begin earlier and affect the whole body.
Accurate typing matters because osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gout, and septic arthritis need different treatments. History, exam, imaging, blood tests, and sometimes joint-fluid analysis separate these entities.
Goals of care are to control pain, preserve function, slow structural damage, and protect quality of life. Many people remain active with a tailored plan and regular follow-up.
- Joint inflammation or degeneration causing pain, stiffness, and swelling
- Major types include osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, gout, and others
- Morning stiffness, activity pain, and reduced motion are common clues
- Diagnosis uses exam, imaging, labs, and sometimes joint aspiration
- Treatment mixes lifestyle measures, medicines, therapy, injections, and surgery when needed
- Early care helps limit irreversible joint damage
What happens in the body
In osteoarthritis, cartilage thins and frays; bone remodels with osteophytes (spurs), and the joint space narrows. Mechanical load from excess weight, prior injury, or repetitive strain accelerates this process.
In autoimmune arthritis, the immune system attacks synovial lining, producing chronic synovitis that can erode cartilage and bone. In gout, urate crystals trigger intense flares. Infection inside a joint causes rapidly destructive septic arthritis.
- Cartilage loss and bone remodelling in osteoarthritis
- Synovial immune attack in rheumatoid and related diseases
- Crystal deposition (urate) in gout flares
- Infection can destroy a joint within days if untreated
Signs and symptoms
Symptoms differ by type and severity. Common possibilities include:
- Joint pain, stiffness, and swelling
- Morning stiffness or stiffness after sitting
- Pain with stairs, grip, or other load-bearing tasks
- Reduced range of motion or difficulty using a limb
- Fatigue or flu-like feelings in inflammatory arthritis
- Bumps on fingers (nodes) in some osteoarthritis patterns
- Numbness or tingling when swelling irritates nearby nerves
- Hot, extremely tender joint with fever—urgent evaluation needed
- In gout: sudden night-time agonising pain, often in the big toe
- In psoriatic disease: finger/toe swelling and nail pitting with skin psoriasis
Causes and risk factors
Causes depend on arthritis type. Factors clinicians weigh include:
- Age-related cartilage wear (osteoarthritis)
- Obesity and repetitive joint stress from work or sport
- Prior fracture, ligament tear, dislocation, or sports injury
- Autoimmune disease (rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, psoriatic arthritis)
- Uric acid crystal buildup (gout)
- Joint infection or reactive arthritis after infection
- Genetic predisposition and family history
- Female sex raises risk for several autoimmune arthritides; postmenopausal bone/joint health also matters
Diagnosis and evaluation
Evaluation identifies the arthritis type, severity, and complications:
- History of pattern (which joints, morning stiffness duration, skin/nail clues, injury, diet)
- Exam for tenderness, swelling, deformity, and motion limits
- X-rays for joint-space narrowing, spurs, or erosions
- MRI when soft-tissue or early cartilage detail is needed
- Blood tests: inflammatory markers, rheumatoid factor, anti-CCP, uric acid, and others as indicated
- Joint fluid analysis to evaluate infection, gout, or inflammation
- Referral to rheumatology or orthopaedics for complex or rapidly progressive disease
Treatment and management
Treatment is matched to type and severity. Do not start long-term steroids, strong pain medicines, or disease-modifying drugs on your own:
- Patient education, activity pacing, and joint-protection strategies
- Physiotherapy and graded low-impact exercise (walking, cycling) to build support muscles
- Heat or cold packs for symptomatic relief
- Pain and anti-inflammatory medicines as advised (for example topical or oral NSAIDs when safe)
- Disease-modifying drugs and biologics for rheumatoid and related inflammatory arthritis under specialist care
- Urate-lowering therapy and flare plans for gout
- Intra-articular injections (steroid, hyaluronate, or other options) in selected joints
- Nutritional measures and weight loss when excess load worsens osteoarthritis
- Arthroscopy or joint replacement when pain and damage persist despite optimised non-surgical care
Prevention, self-care, and lifestyle
Not every condition is fully preventable, but the steps below may lower risk or recurrence:
- Maintain a healthy weight to reduce joint load
- Stay active with joint-friendly exercise; avoid prolonged immobility
- Protect joints from injury during sport and heavy work
- Adequate calcium and vitamin D under clinical guidance; discuss bone health after menopause
- Limit smoking and excess alcohol
- Seek early care for persistent joint pain rather than waiting for deformity
- Anti-inflammatory dietary patterns (vegetables, fruit, fish/omega-3 sources) may support overall joint health
Possible complications
Delay, missed care, or unsafe self-medication can raise the chance of complications in some cases:
- Progressive cartilage loss and joint deformity
- Chronic pain and disability affecting work and self-care
- Muscle weakness from disuse
- Systemic complications of untreated inflammatory arthritis (for example lung or eye involvement in some diseases)
- Medication side effects if therapies are not monitored
- Depression and sleep disturbance linked to chronic pain
- Septic arthritis complications if infection is missed
When to see a doctor or seek emergency care
Seek prompt medical advice or emergency care if any of the following apply—it is safer not to wait and see:
- Joint pain with fever, marked redness, or extreme tenderness
- Rapidly worsening swelling or inability to use the joint
- Morning stiffness and pain that persist beyond a few weeks
- Pain that wakes you at night or limits daily tasks
- Known inflammatory arthritis with flare that does not settle on your usual plan
Living with the condition
Living with arthritis is easier with a clear plan: regular movement, pacing, medicines as prescribed, and early help for flares. Support from family, physiotherapy, and peer groups often improves coping.
Avoid relying only on over-the-counter painkillers long term without advice, and do not abandon activity entirely—gentle daily movement usually helps more than bed rest.
Sleep, mood, and smoking status strongly affect pain perception and inflammatory disease control; ask your clinician for help with these alongside joint treatment.
Frequently asked questions
What are the most common types of arthritis?
Osteoarthritis is most common. Other important types include rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, gout, ankylosing spondylitis, and juvenile idiopathic arthritis.
Is arthritis only an older person’s disease?
No. Osteoarthritis rises with age, but inflammatory arthritis and post-traumatic arthritis can occur in young and middle-aged adults, and children can develop juvenile forms.
Can diet help?
No single food cures arthritis, but a balanced pattern rich in vegetables, fruit, and omega-3 sources, with less ultra-processed food, supports weight control and overall inflammation.
Will I need surgery?
Most people do not. Surgery is considered when pain and function remain poor despite medicines, therapy, and injections—joint replacement can be transformative in advanced disease.
Is exercise safe?
Yes for most people when tailored. Low-impact aerobic activity and strengthening reduce pain and disability; a therapist can adapt programmes during flares.
When is joint pain an emergency?
A hot, extremely painful joint with fever, or sudden inability to move a joint after injury, needs urgent medical care to exclude infection or serious damage.
Important caution
Arthritis is common and often manageable. Matching treatment to the specific type—and starting care before irreversible damage—preserves mobility and quality of life. Seek prompt review for hot swollen joints with fever, and build a long-term plan with your clinical team.