Arthritis
Dr. Pham Hoang Trung
The first symptom of arthritisis a feeling of stiffness in the joints. As the condition gets worse, you feel pain in the joints with movement. The joints may be tender, and sometimes there is swelling, limitation of range of motion, and cracking sounds in the joints.
Arthritis can affect any of your joints but mostly it affects the joints of the hands, shoulders, knees, pelvis and especially the spine. X-rays of arthritic joints may reveal narrowing of the joints, cartilage erosion or bone spurs.
The main cause of arthritis is cartilage degeneration and erosion, and lack of synovial fluid in the joints which cause pain with movement. As we get older, cartilage wears down and there is a decrease in the production of synovial fluid (cartilage is the spongy material that acts as a cushion between the two heads of the bones in a joint to prevent them from rubbing against each other. The synovial fluid inside the joints helps the bones to move easily). A history of manual labor, injuries as in motor vehicle accidents, sprains and strains, and even malnutrition can cause arthritis.
The prescribed or over-the-counter pain killer drugs usually mask the pain symptoms of arthritis but don’t cure the root of the arthritis. Besides, when you take those drugs for prolonged periods of time, they can have serious side effects, such as stomach ulcers, gastrointestinal bleeding, and liver damage.
DR. PHAM HOANG TRUNG
9822 Bolsa Ave. Suite E – Westminster, CA 92683 – USA