Arthritis
Transcript below pic. Episode 7 features a forum discussion on the 3 major types of arthritis. Osteoarthritis (OA), Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) and Psoriatic Arthritis . As a follow up to last weeks episode on Sciatica and how osteoarthritis can be a contributing factor, we felt this would a good time to delve into more detail on the various types of arthritis.
Ron: [00:00:15] Hello and welcome to podcast The Axe, this show. The brief interviews with people just like you whose lives were forever changed by a medical diagnosis. [00:00:24][9.4]
Lita: [00:00:25] I'm Lita. [00:00:26][0.3]
Ron: [00:00:26] I'm Ron. [00:00:26][0.1]
Jean: [00:00:27] And I'm the queen of England. Oh I'm Jean Marie. [00:00:29][1.9]
Lita: [00:00:30] Collectively we are the hosts of podcastD X. [00:00:33][3.0]
Jean: [00:00:34] This podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment and before undertaking a new health care regime. And never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on this podcast. [00:00:55][21.0]
Ron: [00:00:56] Today's show is a forum with just the hosts and we will be talking about arthritis. Last week we touched on osteoarthritis as it relates to sciatica but that's just the tip of the iceberg. [00:01:07][10.6]
Jean: [00:01:08] Indeed. First off we should tell our listeners that there are more than 100 different forms of arthritis and related diseases. The most common are osteoarthritis rheumatoid arthritis and (psoriatic) arthritis. [00:01:22][13.6]
Lita: [00:01:23] I've heard about osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis but psoriatic arthritis is a new one to me. [00:01:29][6.2]
Jean: [00:01:30] Well according to the Arthritis Foundation psoriatic arthritis is an autoimmune inflammatory disease in which the immune system attacks the body causing inflammation and pain. Psoriatic arthritis affects the joints causing arthritis as well as the skin causing psoriasis. And from 30 to 40 percent of the people with psoriasis, the percentage also develops an inflammatory arthritic condition. The symptoms may include joint pain, stiffness, skin rashes, Nail changes, and fatigue, eye problems, swelling and tenderness in the hands and feet as well. [00:02:06][35.9]
Ron: [00:02:07] Wow. If there are seven and a half million people in the United States with psoriasis in 30 to 40 percent of them developed this form of arthritis that means between two and a half to three million people have it? That's not rare at all. [00:02:22][14.9]
Lita: [00:02:22] No I'm kind of surprised I never heard of it. And rheumatoid arthritis affects one and a half million while osteoarthritis, or the degenerative bone disease affects 27 million. That's the it's the killer, no not the killer, it's is the winner that has got, the most people that have it. [00:02:39][17.3]
Jean: [00:02:40] In the arthritis race. [00:02:40][0.7]
Lita: [00:02:41] Yes and in that arthritis race the osteoarthritis wins with 27 million. Oh yeah. [00:02:46][4.7]
Ron: [00:02:46] I Wouldn't want to win. [00:02:47][0.3]
Lita: [00:02:47] No no you're right. Besides being that the most common type, osteoarthritis is acquired from either wear and tear on a joint or from a previous injury to their joint. Rheumatoid or psoriatic arthritis. Oh and psoriatic arthritis they're both diseases that involved the immune system attacking the tendons ligaments and joints. [00:03:09][22.0]
Jean: [00:03:10] Sounds painful. Your own immune system attacking from within seems rather sinister. [00:03:15][4.6]
Lita: [00:03:16] mmhmm. [00:03:16][0.0]
Jean: [00:03:16] The makings of a crime novel but in real life the people suffering from rheumatoid or psoriatic arthritis probably wish it was just a novel instead of something they have to live with day to day. [00:03:26][9.5]
Lita: [00:03:26] Yeah [00:03:26][0.0]
Ron: [00:03:28] While researching for today's topic I read the rheumatoid arthritis can also affect the skin, eyes, lungs, the heart, kidneys, the nerve tissue and also the blood vessels. It can increase your risk of hardened or blocked arteries, inflammation of the sac surrounding your heart. It can scar lung tissue or it can increase your risk of lymphoma. Cancers that develop in the lymph system. [00:03:53][25.1]
Lita: [00:03:54] With the increased risk to these major systems. I imagine that it affects a person's lifespan. [00:03:58][4.4]
Ron: [00:04:00] It can buy as much as 10 to 15 years. It's not as simple achy joint disease. [00:04:05][5.3]
Lita: [00:04:06] No. Right. That's true Ron. And even if it doesn't get to the critical organs the joint deterioration is progressive over time. Jean, can you tell our listeners what treatments are available for rheumatoid arthritis. [00:04:19][13.3]
Jean: [00:04:20] Sure. Again I turned to the Arthritis Foundation for answers. The goals of, for treatment are to stop inflammation, relieve symptoms, prevent organ and joint damage, improve function, and overall well-being. And lastly to reduce long term complications to stop inflammation aggressive treatment as early as possible is recommended. This would include but is not limited to arthritis medication using natural treatments to ease pain and at times surgical intervention is required. Joint surgery may include the total replacement of the joint or the resurfacing or repairing of the damaged areas. [00:04:58][38.2]
Ron: [00:04:59] That right. The natural treatment your doctor may prescribe include Supplements Herbs vitamins and minerals. There's additional information on the Arthritis Foundation Web site and you can find a link on our site Podcast D X dot com. [00:05:16][16.2]
Lita: [00:05:17] Yes. Our Web site will include more information and videos about rheumatoid arthritis. Let's talk a little bit more about osteoarthritis. This is the most prevalent form of arthritis. [00:05:28][10.4]
Jean: [00:05:29] Well I can start us off with some basics. Osteo arthritis is a type of joint disease that results from the breakdown of joint cartilage as well as the bones the cartilage is attached to the most common symptoms are joint pain and stiffness. Early on you may only notice these symptoms following exertion but with the disease as it progresses to the point where you know you might feel pain and stiffness all the time. [00:05:53][24.2]
Ron: [00:05:54] Right. In the most common joints affected are the fingers the neck, lower back knees and the hips. Osteo arthritis may be caused by previous knee injury but can also be due to abnormal joint or limb development, or even inherited factors. It turns into a vicious cycle of pain because as you feel the pain, so you stop using that body part in order to not feel the pain. But then the muscles in that area get weak causing more mechanical stress than the joint in joint inflammation and deterioration. [00:06:25][30.9]
Lita: [00:06:26] Vicious cycle is right even though there's no cure, There are things that you can do to help alleviate the pain and stop the cycle of deterioration. The Arthritis Foundation recommends that you start with hot and cold compresses which Jean was talking about earlier which, they may be beneficial. Heat may help with the stiffness and cold may help reduce the joint pain. Epsom salt baths may also help with inflammation and pain. You can add two cups of epsom salt to a tub of warm water. Exercise is another great way to keep that motion in the affected joint. This is what they do in physical therapy. If you can use a warm therapy pool you'll get the opportunity to exercise and the water's buoyancy helps take your body weight off of the joint while surrounded by warm water. It's a win win win. [00:07:18][51.3]
Jean: [00:07:20] Yay! [00:07:20][0.0]
Lita: [00:07:20] Your doctor may prescribe pain medications or over-the-counter medications such as ibuprofen. [00:07:24][4.5]
Jean: [00:07:26] In addition there are many supportive devices available that can add support to the affected joints. These include braces, canes, grabbing tools, gloves, knee taping and shoe inserts. You can actually find a list of several of these items on our website. As far as natural remedies green tea has been shown to increase cartilage production and help reduce inflammation. But even though it is considered a natural product anything taken in large amounts is not good for you and great amounts of green tea can affect the liver. So it's best to take it a moderation and under the guidance of your doctor and the same warning should come into play with tumoric and ginger both have anti inflammatory properties but are not safe in large doses like we always say check with your doctor first. [00:08:11][45.5]
Ron: [00:08:13] Indeed. Let me add, that from a recreational therapy standpoint, the best type of exercise for osteoarthritis, use light resistance, it improves flexibility and they offer an aerobic element, they're considered to be low impact. Some of these activities include bike riding, swimming, Taichi, walking and yoga. Your doctor would probably suggest starting slowly and building up over time. And if you wear proper footwear your joints will appreciate that. We will be interviewing a sports podiatrist in the coming weeks and we will be sure to ask him specifically what shoes are best for different activities in which shoes you should avoid. [00:08:56][43.0]
Jean: [00:08:57] Wow. We have covered a lot of ground and there is still so much more to learn. For additional information. Talk with your health care team and please go to our Web site and look at the resources page for arthritis. But for now we are going to wrap up today's show just like you'd wrap up a bad ankle. [00:09:15][18.1]
Lita: [00:09:15] OK, or the knee or true, we really needed to just cover the topic in broad strokes. If you have arthritis or know someone that has it and would like to be interviewed for our show please contact us and if you have questions or comments related to today's show you can contact us at podcast dx at yahoo dot com through our Web site. Podcast D X dot com. Our Facebook page. Instagram or Twitter. [00:09:45][29.5]
Ron: [00:09:46] And as always if you have a moment to spare please give us a five star review where ever you get your podcast. Till next time. [00:09:46][0.0]
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