Does Joint Pain Always Mean Arthritis? (The Truth)
TL;DR ARTICLE SUMMARY
No, joint pain doesn’t always mean arthritis because it can also come from injuries, infections, or joint overuse (as seen with marathon runners). While arthritis is common today, there is a possibility that your joint pain may not be related to arthritis at all. It’s important to get checked by your doctor to find out the root cause of your joint pain; this way, if it’s persistent, you will find the best way to tackle it.
Joint Pain and Arthritis
Joint pain is a discomfort almost everyone faces at one point in their life. It can show up in different ways, from twinge in your knee after a run, stiffness in your fingers after exposure to cold temperatures, or the ache in your elbow after a full day hard manual work.
But how do you recognize when your joint pain signals a deeper issue, such as arthritis? The answer is not always. [1] In this article we’ll talk about different causes of joint pain and why it doesn’t always mean arthritis.
Joint Complexity
Our joints are incredibly complex. They are designed with a combination of different tissues ranging from ligaments, tendons, bone, cartilage, to synovial fluid.
Healthy joints are fundamental to moving freely and enjoying life. Sadly, many people experience loss of joint mobility due to factors like age, joint overuse, and inflammatory conditions.
Arthritis is one such inflammatory condition. However, as we’ll see now, there are many other potential causes of joint pain. [2]
What Causes Joint Pain?
Joint pain doesn’t choose who it’s going to affect. It can happen to people of any age group, fitness levels, or lifestyle. And it can come from many sources.
Injury is one of the most common causes of joint pain. The pain can be just mild and acute, or it can linger for years from an event in a distant past such as sports injury.
Joint pain can also come from repetitive strains, which happens with athletes and heavy manual workers.
Your joints are sturdy, but damage caused to any part of its tissue can result in pain. There’s a condition called post-traumatic arthritis which happens rarely, after a severe traumatic injury. [3]
Infections are another cause of joint pain. Bacteria, viruses, or fungi can invade joint tissue and wreak havoc once there. Ticks are one example that comes to mind.
Less common but also a possibility is to experience joint pain as a side effect of some meds.
Last is joint pain as a symptom of diseases like lupus, gout, or sadly, in rare cases, certain types of cancer.
Arthritis as a Cause of Joint Pain
Okay, if we eliminate every other cause of joint pain that we’ve talked about above, that leaves us with a high probability of it being arthritis.
It’s understandable if you assume joint pain might be stemming from arthritis—after all, this condition is the leading cause of joint pain. It’s more common among older folks but more and more younger adults seem to be experiencing it too.
Arthritis is an umbrella term for inflammatory conditions that involve joint tissue pain and degradation.
The most common types of arthritis are osteoarthritis, which is typically caused by wear-and-tear of the joint’s cartilage, and rheumatoid arthritis, which is an autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks its own joint tissue. [4]
Both cause joint pain but each has unique symptoms that help doctors identify which one it is.
How do You Tell if It’s Arthritis
This is something only a qualified professional can diagnose you with. Our article is meant strictly for informational and entertainment purposes – this is not medical advice.
With that said, one of the ways of differentiating arthritis from other causes of joint pain is checking the symptoms and their patterns.
Arthritis tends to come with a combination of symptoms besides joint pain, which includes joint stiffness (more so in the morning or period of inactivity), swelling and redness around your joints. Rheumatoid arthritis can even affect the same joint on both sides of the body.
If you just have joint pain and no other symptoms, it’s important to check with your doctor who will be able to perform detailed tests to find out exactly what you’re dealing with.
How do You Manage Joint Pain?
No matter what the cause is, joint pain can significantly impact your daily life. This makes treating it as early as possible crucial.
Obviously, for severe cases, medication and surgery are the go to options that your doctor might recommend.[5]
However, there are also lifestyle modifications that can significantly diminish your joint pain. This includes weight control, low-impact exercise like swimming, and an anti-inflammatory diet among others. [6]
Supplements are also highly effective at lowering joint pain. Fish oil, turmeric, and MSM are the basic stack that is natural and often brings concrete results if taken daily.
Conclusion
So, does joint pain always mean arthritis? Absolutely not always, but chances are it could be, since arthritis is the leading cause of joint pain.
Other potential causes include injuries, infections, overuse, and diseases such as Lyme.
Finding out what the root cause of your joint troubles is will help you find the best way to get rid of it, or, at the very least, diminish it and improve your quality of life in the process.
References
- Senthelal S, Li J, Ardeshirzadeh S, et al. Arthritis. [Updated 2022 Jun 19]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK518992/
- Havelin J, King T. Mechanisms Underlying Bone and Joint Pain. Curr Osteoporos Rep. 2018 Dec;16(6):763-771. doi: 10.1007/s11914-018-0493-1. PMID: 30370434; PMCID: PMC6554716.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6554716/#:~:text=Bone%20and%20joint%20pain%20can,associated%20with%20aging%2C%20and%20cancer. - Punzi L, Galozzi P, Luisetto R, Favero M, Ramonda R, Oliviero F, Scanu A. Post-traumatic arthritis: overview on pathogenic mechanisms and role of inflammation. RMD Open. 2016 Sep 6;2(2):e000279. doi: 10.1136/rmdopen-2016-000279. PMID: 27651925; PMCID: PMC5013366.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5013366/ - Senthelal S, Li J, Ardeshirzadeh S, et al. Arthritis. [Updated 2022 Jun 19]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK518992/
- Kidd BL, Langford RM, Wodehouse T. Arthritis and pain. Current approaches in the treatment of arthritic pain. Arthritis Res Ther. 2007;9(3):214. doi: 10.1186/ar2147. PMID: 17572915; PMCID: PMC2206347.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2206347/ - Susko AM, Fitzgerald GK. The pain-relieving qualities of exercise in knee osteoarthritis. Open Access Rheumatol. 2013 Oct 15;5:81-91. doi: 10.2147/OARRR.S53974. PMID: 27790027; PMCID: PMC5074793.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5074793/
