Adapt To Life With Arthritis

Arthritis can make everyday activities incredibly difficult. From brushing your teeth to getting dressed, everything becomes a challenge.

It’s frustrating when you can’t do the things you love because of arthritis pain. You feel like you’re stuck in a never-ending cycle of pain and frustration.

Archer St Physiotherapy Centre can help. We specialise in treating arthritis and have helped many people find relief from their symptoms. Our treatment plans are tailored specifically for each individual, so you can be sure that you’re getting the best possible care.

Learn More About Arthritis

Arthritis is a disease of the joints. Joints are places where two or more bones meet. In the knee joint, for example, the lower leg bones (tibia and fibula) meet the thighbone (femur). Where the head of the thighbone (femoral head) meets the cup portion of the pelvis (acetabulum), is the hip joint.

Cartilage. An end of a bone in a joint is covered with cartilage. With cartilage between the bones, the joint can move easily without friction caused by bone-on-bone contact.
Synovium. Synovium, the tissue that lines a joint's capsule, produces fluid that helps reduce friction and wear in the joint.
Muscles, tendons, and ligaments. A ligament connects a bone to another and keeps the joint stable. Tissues supply power to the joint and enable it to move.

Causes

Typical Causes

The two main types of arthritis – osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis – affect joints differently.

Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis, damaging cartilage - the hard, slick covering that covers the ends of bones at joints. In some cases, enough damage to the cartilage can cause the bone ends to grind against each other, resulting in pain and restricted movement. Joint wear and tear is accelerated by injury or infection.
Osteoarthritis also degrades the connective tissues that hold muscle to bone and hold the joints together. If cartilage is severely damaged, the joint lining may become inflamed and swollen.

Rheumatoid arthritis

Common Symptoms Of Arthritis

Arthritis is most commonly associated with symptoms affecting joints. Symptoms and signs vary by type of arthritis:

Treatments

Physiotherapy Treatments For You

01.

Hydrotherapy

Deload arthritic joints and ease joint pain through water buoyancy

02.

Ultrasound Treatment

Reduction of chronic pain reduction is noted along with improved conditions of chronic inflammation thanks to the increase in blood flow.

03.

Mulligan's Concept Therapy

Address joint pains with the proper realignment of joints

04.

Heat Therapy

Allow better reception of therapeutic treatments when using heat to improve tissue extensibility.

05.

Electrical Stimulation

Manage your pain by cutting off the transmission of pain signals and provide relief.

Frequently Asked Questions

FAQ's about Arthritis

What are the different types of arthritis?

There are five main types of arthritis. The symptoms of arthritis can develop almost immediately for some types of arthritis, while others may take years to develop.

Osteoarthritis
The most common type of arthritis is osteoarthritis. As a result of a mechanical breakdown of the cartilage covering your joints, there is no cushion, so the bones rub against each other. Osteoarthritis is characterized by sharp pain and a grinding, popping, or clicking sound when you move your joints. Later inflammation can lead to redness and swelling.
Rheumatoid arthritis
A disease of the immune system, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) affects the joints. A blood test can confirm your doctor’s suspicions that you have RA by detecting the RA marker. Rheumatoid arthritis causes deformity of the joints and joint pain. It usually affects the same joints on one side of the body.
Psoriatic arthritis
Typically, people with psoriasis, an autoimmune skin condition, develop psoriatic arthritis (PA). Psoriasis is characterized by patches of scaly, cracked skin, often around the joints, but some PA patients experience arthritic symptoms before skin problems appear. PA is usually accompanied by pain in the legs, feet, ankles, hands, and fingers.
Fibromyalgia
Musculoskeletal pain can be caused by fibromyalgia. Fifty percent to seventy percent of people with RA also have fibromyalgia. Although RA is an autoimmune, inflammatory disorder, most doctors do not consider fibromyalgia an autoimmune disorder. In order to diagnose fibromyalgia, pain must be present in at least 18 distinct body regions, and there must be no evidence of similar conditions.
Gout
A gouty arthritis is caused by deposits of uric acid crystals in the joints. The pain usually begins in the big toe and then spreads to the ankle and foot. One lower extremity may be affected only once. Gout usually affects one’s toe suddenly, causing extreme pain as the swelling forces the toe out of its position.

Can cracking your knuckles cause arthritis?

There are a lot of reasons why people crack their knuckles – anxiety, restlessness, or just pure pleasure. However, it is not known to cause arthritis. Cracking your knuckles has no known negative effects. At worst, knuckle-cracking may cause temporary swelling or a feeling of weakness in the hands, but not arthritis.

Bubbles in the synovial fluid, which lubricates joints, burst when a cracked knuckle cracks. By pulling the bones apart and bending them backward, you create negative pressure, causing the bubbles to pop.

What are the early warning signs of arthritis?

Joint pain may not appear until your arthritis is well advanced. To stay on top of your condition, you should also look out for other warning signs. Early warning signs of arthritis may include:

Morning Joint Stiffness
An early sign of arthritis is stiff joints when you wake up in the morning. If you are suffering from osteoarthritis, this stiffness typically lasts for a few minutes. You could have rheumatoid arthritis if you experience stiffness over an extended period of time.
Joint Swelling
When your joints swell, your arthritis is progressing. There may be a noticeable increase in the size of your joints and they may feel warm to the touch. Occasionally, you may experience swelling in your joints for several days. The worsening of your condition can cause your joints to swell and make moving difficult.
Fever
Low-grade fever can be caused by rheumatoid arthritis. When you have joint pain and a fever, it can be an indication of arthritis or an infection.
Numbness & Tingling
Arthritis can cause your nerves to be compressed when your joints become inflamed. A numbness or tingling sensation can occur around the joint as a result of this pressure. When you move your joint, you may also experience burning sensations throughout other parts of your body.
Chronic Fatigue
Chronic fatigue is a not-so-obvious sign of arthritis. As your joints wear out, you may feel unusually tired. Fatigue can appear before more obvious signs of arthritis. Fatigue can start as a short-lasting feeling but progress to a longer-lasting one.

What are bone spurs?

A bone spur is a bony projection that develops along the edge of a bone. Joints are often the site of bone spurs. Likewise, they may develop on your spine. A joint injury associated with osteoarthritis can lead to bone spurs. For years, many bone spurs go undetected due to the absence of symptoms. Treatment might not be necessary. There may be a need for the treatment depending on where the spurs are located and how they affect your health.

The majority of bone spurs cause no symptoms. Sometimes, bone spurs are not noticed until an X-ray for another condition reveals them. However, bone spurs can exacerbate pain and cause you to lose movement in your joints in some cases. Symptoms vary depending on where the bone spur is located. Some examples are:

Knee.
It can be painful to extend or bend your leg when you have bone spurs in your knee.
Spine.
The space in which your spinal cord is located can narrow due to bone spurs on your vertebrae. In addition to pinching your spinal cord and its nerve roots, these bone spurs can also cause weakness or numbness in your arms or legs.
Hip.
Even though you might feel the pain in your knee, bone spurs can make it difficult to move your hip. In some cases, bone spurs can reduce the range of motion in your hip joint.