Which one is it?

There is more than one type of arthritis. The two main types that people are affected by are rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. Both can cause pain that feels like a giant rat gnawing at a joint or on a bone, but they also have vast differences from each other too. In a bid to understand your own body and your own pain, it is important for you to understand the differences between rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. Understanding the signs and symptoms and knowing which you have can help you treat the condition more accurately and to a greater effect.

The age gap

One of the main differences between osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis is the age at which they affect patients. Osteoarthritis is known as an age related arthritis, affecting older people. Rheumatoid arthritis, on the other hand, affects people across the age spectrum from older adults to even young children. The younger you are when affected, the more likely it is that you are suffering from rheumatoid arthritis.

The pain you experience is another indicative difference between the two conditions. Osteoarthritis generally affects a single joint at a time. For instance, when it strikes a knee, it won’t be both knees but just one of the two. When you are affected by rheumatoid arthritis, all the same joints are usually affected. For instance, if your knees are affected, both will be affected and not simply the one.

Difference in reason

The cause of osteoarthritis is that your cartilage cushioning your joints undergoes wear and tear throughout your life. This wear and tear inhibits the function of the cartilage which is to act as a shock absorber and a cushion between two bones. When this wear and tear affects the cartilage’s performance, it leads to the swelling, inflammation and joint pain of osteoarthritis.

Rheumatoid arthritis often occurs long before such damage could have been done to the cartilage.

Because of the cause of osteoarthritis, it only really affects the body’s joints where rheumatoid arthritis may affect other parts of your body as well.

There are also differences in the factors contributing to the development of each type of arthritis. Osteoarthritis can be brought on by obesity, hereditary inheritance of the condition, overusing or overtaxing the joints and injury to the joints. Rheumatoid arthritis may be aggravated by obesity but it is not caused by it.

Different, even in treatment

There are often cases of similar diseases being treated with similar or even the same drugs and methods in the medical world. Osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis do not fall under that category of afflictions. Each one is treated differently.

Drugs that inhibit the activity of the immune system are often prescribed as treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. Both forms of arthritis may be treated with drugs that reduce the inflammation of the joint but Osteoarthritis, on the other hand, is often treated only with the use of anti-inflammatory drugs and not with immune system suppressants.

Speak to your doctor before starting any form of treatment for osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis.