The term rheumatism covers a range of disorders, including rheumatoid arthritis, palindromic rheumatism, and nonarticular rheumatism. These conditions have several symptoms in common, such as joint and muscle pain and stiffness, joint inflammation, and redness and warmth to the affected area. Treating symptoms can be challenging, since pain, swelling, and reduced range of motion are often of varying frequency and duration.
When people refer to rheumatism, they generally mean rheumatoid arthritis. This autoimmune disorder causes the classic symptoms of swollen, reddened joints in the hands and feet. Joints are usually painful to the touch, and the inflamed area may be warm. Range of motion is typically decreased since joints are often stiff in the morning in the early stages. Stiffness may last throughout the day if joint erosion occurs in later stages. Although rheumatoid arthritis typically begins in the small bones of the body, it is a chronic condition that often progresses to pain in the shoulders, neck, and back throughout the aging process.
Palindromic rheumatism (PR) is an intermittent condition resulting in sudden joint inflammation, which causes pain and stiffness. Unlike rheumatoid arthritis, this condition has no lasting effect on joints. PR can progress to rheumatoid arthritis, typically at a rate of 50 percent. Drugs traditionally used to treat malaria often decrease the severity and frequency of symptoms in this condition and have been known to lessen the likelihood of developing the more serious and chronic rheumatoid arthritis.
Nonarticular rheumatism, or regional pain syndrome (RPS), affects the soft tissues around the joints. Conditions like fibromyalgia and bursitis are examples of RPS. These conditions can cause pain either locally, like in the shoulder or hip as in bursitis, or in non-specific areas of the body, as in fibromyalgia. In bursitis, the joint swelling, stiffness, and pain are caused by inflammation of the synovial sacs, which act as cushions between the bone and soft tissue of a joint. The causes of fibromyalgia are not well-understood, but symptoms of pain and tenderness occur after activity and rest, while the pain of bursitis occurs during movement of the affected area, decreasing or disappearing during rest.
Treatment of the most common symptoms associated with the different forms of the condition include anti-inflammatory medications, physical therapy, and surgery, such as joint replacement. Lifestyle changes, such as quitting smoking, regular low-impact exercise, and stress-reducing techniques, are typically advised for symptom relief. Treatment of the underlying conditions is usually inconsistent, since the symptoms can be intermittent, non-specific, and variable in frequency and duration.