Rheumatism is a historical term used to describe any condition of joint or connective tissue pain. Joint pain can occur in a variety of conditions, along with other body complaints, depending on the disease. Some of the major diseases leading to "rheumatic" complaints include the seronegative spondylopathies, rheumatic fever, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, vasculitis and osteoarthritis. Rheumatologic conditions have many different types of manifestations and can affect nearly any organ in the body. Vasculitic conditions can lead to a variety of injuries to any organ in the body.
Muscle/Fascial Pain
Muscle and fascial pain is a symptom of myositis, fibromyalgia, lupus and polymyalgia rheumatica. Polymyositis and dermatomyositis are autoimmune conditions in which the body mounts an immune attack on the muscle. Pain and weakness are typically present in the muscles in these myositis conditions. Dermatomyositis involves a skin rash. Fibromyalgia involves pain at tender points in addition to other symptoms such as fatigue, insomnia and depression. Polymyalgia rheumatica is a syndrome of pain in the muscles of the neck, shoulders and pelvis, according to the "Primer on the Rheumatic Diseases."
Tendon Pain
Tendon pain is very common in the seronegative arthritis conditions. When the tendon is painful at the insertion into the bone, this is known as enthesitis. Conditions such as psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, reactive arthritis/Reiter's disease and inflammatory bowel disease-related arthritis are associated with enthesitis, according to Dr. Rajesh Kataria of Albert Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia, PA.
Joint Pain
Joint pain is a very common complaint in any rheumatologic disease. Any joint can be involved in a rheumatologic disease. Osteoarthritis can affect the small joints of the hands and any of the large joints. Rheumatoid arthritis can also affect the hand joints or the large joints. Imaging studies can often show erosions, joint space narrowing and other bone growths. Sometimes in early disease, there are no findings on imaging studies.
Neck and Back Pain
Neck and back pain can occur with a variety of rheumatologic conditions. Osteoarthritis can lead to joint space narrowing and abnormal bone growths that can be the cause of pain. Ankylosing spondylitis is a seronegative arthritis in which the spine can stiffen and lose its ability to flex. Rheumatoid arthritis can often cause pain in the spine.
Skin
Various rheumatologic conditions can cause rashes or other skin changes. Lupus is known for its "malar rash" on the face. Psoriatic arthritis can have psoriasis plaques on the skin or nail pits. Rheumatic fever can have a red rash known as erythema marginatum. Scleroderma can thicken the skin into a condition known as sclerodactyly.
References
- "Primer on the rheumatic diseases"; John Klippel (editor); 2001.
- "Current Medical Diagnosis and Treatment"; Steven McPhee and Maxine Papadakis (editor); 2007."
- American Family Physician: Spondyloarthropathies
