Joint Pain
Joints are the parts of your body where
your bones meet. Joints allow the bones of your skeleton to move. Joint pain
refers to discomfort, aches, and soreness in any of the body’s joints. Joint
pain is a common complaint. It doesn’t typically require a hospital visit.
Sometimes, joint pain is the result of an illness or injury. Arthritis is also
a common cause of joint pain. However, it can also be due to other conditions
or factors.
Causes
Pain is also a feature of joint
inflammation (arthritis, such as rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis) and
infection, and extremely rarely it can be a cause of cancer of the joint. Pain
within the joint is a common cause of shoulder pain, ankle pain, and knee pain.
Joint pain is also referred to as arthralgia.
Symptoms
Symptoms and signs associated with joint
pain can include:
Joint redness,
Joint swelling,
Joint tenderness,
Joint warmth,
Limping,
Locking of the
joint,
Loss of range of
motion of the joint,
Stiffness,
Weakness.
Diagnosis
Your doctor will probably perform a
physical exam. They’ll also ask you a series of questions about your joint
pain. This may help to narrow down the potential causes.
A joint X-ray may be necessary to identify
arthritis-related joint damage. If your doctor suspects there’s another cause,
they may perform a blood test to screen for certain autoimmune disorders. They
may also perform a sedimentation rate test to measure the level of inflammation
in the body or a complete blood count.
Treatment
Your treatment options will depend on the
cause of the pain. In some cases, your doctor will need to draw out accumulated
fluid in the joint area. They might also recommend surgery to replace the
joint.
