Arthritis is classified in different types such as osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, reactive arthritis, gout, psoriatic arthritis and septic arthritis. Causes of arthritis vary with its types and some of them are still not clear. The development of symptoms like joint stiffness, pain, tenderness and swelling is resulted from some factors such as heredity, aging, repetitive use of joints, injury, infection and tumor necrosis factor.
Osteoarthritis results from the breakdown and eventual loss of cartilage. It is caused by aging, obesity, congenital abnormalities of joints, repeated joint injuries or surgery and some other disease. Another type of arthritis is caused by deposition of uric acid crystals in the synovial fluid and synovial lining. Major possible causes of rheumatoid arthritis are overactive immune system, hormones, genetics (heredity) and bacterial or viral infections.
Some infections or diseases are also found to be significant causes of arthritis. Psoriatic arthritis is associated with skin disease, psoriasis. Septic arthritis originates from bacterial infections such as staphylococci, hemophilus influenzae, gram-negative bacilli, gonococci, staphylococci, and streptococci. Besides this, Reiter’s syndrome may occur after the infections such as Campylobacter, Chlamydia, Yersinia, Shigella or Salmonella.
Many types of arthritis are hereditary and specific genetic markers can significantly give rise to arthritis. The genetic marker HLA-DR4 is related to the rheumatoid arthritis, while HLA-B27 is associated with ankylosing spondylitis as well as Reiter’s syndrome. Recently, two more genes such as IL23R and ARTS1 are identified which are related to ankylosing spondylitis. Besides this, mutation in the ank gene results in decreased levels of pyrophosphate in the joint due to which there is an accumulation of the mineral deposits resulting in development of osteoarthritis. Certain genetic factors are responsible for the development of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and gout.
Aging is another factor that significantly contributes in development of symptoms of arthritis. With aging, the cartilage that covers the joints becomes cracked, thin and even wears away. The bones may break down which leads to joint pain and dysfunction.
Repetitive use of joints can be one of the important causes of arthritis. It can give rise to degradation of cartilage in joints which may result in dysfunction of joints and friction between the bones. Previous joint injury due to accidents or other reasons can increase the risk of developing arthritis. A tibial plateau fracture is a type of injury leading to arthritis, where the broken area of the bone enters the cartilage. In addition to this, obesity is one of the crucial factors in development of arthritis. It puts an extra stress on the joints which causes wearing of cartilage.
