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Arthritis, which literally means "inflammation of a joint", is a disabling disease and more and more people the world over are suffering from it.

It is mostly the knees, hands, shoulders, elbows, hips, fingers or balls of the feet that are affected.

The origins of arthritis are unknown. The main symptoms are pain when getting up in the morning and when in motion. It can be aggravated by exercise and relieved by rest. It seems mobility and muscle strengthening exercises are working to counter it.

Recognizable symptoms are joint stiffness, commonly referred to as morning stiffness, difficulty in moving and a grating sensation, warmth, redness and or joint swelling which results in deformity as a result of cartilage loss among others.

Arthritis can be treated but not cured. It is not infectious but can be inherited from one generation to the next through genes. Osteoarthritis is the commonest joint disease and its prevalence increases with age so that more than 50% of older people over 65 years of age have clinical evidence of Osteoarthritis. Worldwide, Osteoarthritis affects approximately 40 million people.

Osteoarthritis, which means the wearing down of the surface of a joint, is a `local disease' which is confined to a few specific joints in the body. The cartilage `cushion' deteriorates resulting in pain and loss of movement as bone rubs against bone, and the bones underneath becoming rough. The joint normally heals itself but in very few cases results in severe damage and deformity.

Another type of arthritis, Rheumatoid arthritis, is in about six percent of all reported cases. It affects the entire body resulting in general fatigue and formation of lumps under the skin called "rheumatoid nodules". This kind of arthritis afflicts three times more women than men and has adverse effects on the health of a person

Arthritis can be managed through a range of treatments from keeping a balance between rest and exercise, the gentle use of the afflicted joint, and drug therapy, mainly for relief of pain and to increase mobility.

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