What Is Arthritis?

The word arthritis comes from the Greek arthron meaning "joint" and the Latin itis meaning "inflammation".

Arthritis is a joint disorder featuring inflammation. A joint is an area of the body where two different bones meet. A joint functions to move the body parts connected by its bones. Arthritis literally means inflammation of one or more joints.

Signs and symptoms include:

• Pain and swelling in your joints, especially in the smaller joints of hands and feet.
• Generalized aching or stiffness of the joints and muscles, especially after sleep or rest period.
• Creaky bones which can become painful and swollen.
• Loss of motion of the affected joints.
• Loss of strength in the muscles attached to the affected joints.
• Fatigue, which can be severe during times of flare ups.
• Low grade fever.
• Deformity of the joints over time.
• General sense of not feeling well.