Occasional Joint Pain

• Joint Pain Icd 10 Code
• Occasional Finger Joint Pain
• Causes Of Joint Inflammation
• Joint Pain Supplements
• Sporadic Joint Pain Causes

Joint pain is a very common problem with many possible causes, but it's usually a result of injury or arthritis.

In older people, joint pain that gets steadily worse is usually a sign of osteoarthritis. It may affect just 1 joint or many.

Hip pain is a common complaint that can be caused by a wide variety of problems. The precise location of your hip pain can provide valuable clues about the underlying cause. Problems within the hip joint itself tend to result in pain on the inside of your hip or your groin.

Pain in a joint is one of the most common reasons why patients are referred to a rheumatologist, often with the suspicion that the pain is due to arthritis. Although there are many causes of joint pain, one simple question can help to differentiate between arthritis and most of the other conditions. Pain in a specific joint may lead you to suspect arthritis or another health condition. When the pain stops and moves to a joint in another part of your body, you may be experiencing migratory. Arthritis (the inflammation of one or more joints) is the leading cause of hand pain.

See your GP if you have persistent symptoms of osteoarthritis.

The information and advice on this page should not be used to self-diagnose your condition, but may give you a better idea of what's causing your pain.

Pain in just 1 joint

Knee pain

The knee joint is probably the most frequently damaged joint and is particularly vulnerable as it takes the full weight of your body.

But knee pain is not always a joint problem. Learn about the most common causes of knee pain and what you should do.

Inflammation of the joint lining

If you have injured the joint recently and it suddenly becomes painful again, the thin layer of tissue lining the joints and tendons may be inflamed, a condition called traumatic synovitis.

It usually does not cause any redness or heat.

You should be able to manage injury-related swelling at home with anti-inflammatory medicines, such as ibuprofen, an icepack and rest.

Gout or pseudogout

If the skin over the joint is hot and red, and the pain comes in repeated attacks, the cause is likely to be either gout or pseudogout.

Both of these are types of arthritis.

Gout usually affects the joint of the big toe first before affecting other joints.

It's important to correctly diagnose gout, as treatment will prevent future attacks of joint pain and disability.

Pseudogout is similar to gout, but usually affects the knee joint first.

See your GP if you think you have gout or pseudogout.

Damage to the cartilage at the back of the kneecap

Knee pain that feels worse when you go up or down stairs could be a sign of a damaged kneecap, called chondromalacia patellae.

This should not cause any redness or heat around the knee.

The cause is not understood, but it can be linked to overuse of the knee.

You can treat this problem yourself with anti-inflammatory medicines, such as ibuprofen, an icepack and rest.

Bleeding into the joint space

If you have recently had an injury to the knee joint, such as a torn ligament or knee fracture, it may cause bleeding into the joint spaces. This is known as haemarthrosis.

This is more likely to happen if you take anticoagulants, such as warfarin.

Signs of haemarthrosis are:

• swelling of the knee
• warmth
• stiffness and bruising, which occur soon after the injury

Go to A&E immediately for treatment if you have a very swollen knee following an injury.

Less common causes

Sudden pain in a joint is less commonly caused by:

• a fracture – read about a broken arm or wrist, broken leg, broken ankle or hip fracture
• reactive arthritis – which usually develops after an infection and tends to affect young adults
• psoriatic arthritis – a type of arthritis that affects up to 1 in 5 people with psoriasis
• rheumatoid arthritis – which can start in just 1 joint, with the pain coming and going
• Osgood-Schlatter's disease – swelling and tenderness over the bony bump just below the kneecap

Rarely, the cause may be:

• septic arthritis – a serious health condition that causes a painful, hot, swollen joint that you will not be able to move (sometimes with a high temperature); see your GP urgently or go to A&E
• haemophilia – an inherited illness that affects the blood's ability to clot
• a tropical infection
• cancer
• crumbling of the bone (avascular necrosis) – caused by a lack of blood supply
• repeated dislocation of the joint

Pain in many joints

Rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is a type of arthritis that causes pain and swelling in the joints, usually the hands, feet and wrists.

The pain may come and go in the early stages, with long periods between attacks.

It can make you feel generally unwell and tired.

Psoriatic arthritis

Psoriatic arthritis affects up to 1 in 5 people with psoriasis.

This type of arthritis is unpredictable, but flare-ups can usually be controlled with treatment.

Like other types of arthritis, it means that 1 or more of your joints are inflamed and become swollen, stiff, painful and difficult to move.

A viral infection that causes arthritis

Examples of viral infections that can cause pain in the joints and symptoms of a fever include:

Joint Pain Icd 10 Code

• viral hepatitis – liver inflammation caused by a virus
• rubella – a viral infection that used to be common in children

A disease of the connective tissue

Widespread joint pain is sometimes a sign of a disease that affects almost all the organs of the body, such as:

• lupus – where the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy cells, tissue and organs
• scleroderma – where the immune system attacks connective tissue underneath the skin, causing hard, thickened areas of skin

Less common causes

Widespread joint pain can less commonly be caused by:

• a rarer type of arthritis – such as ankylosing spondylitis, juvenile arthritis or reactive arthritis
• Behçet's syndrome – a rare and poorly understood condition that causes inflammation of the blood vessels
• Henoch-Schönlein purpura – a rare condition, usually seen in children, that causes blood vessels to become inflamed
• cancer
• some treatments – including steroid therapy, isoniazid and hydralazine
• hypertrophic pulmonary osteoarthropathy – a rare disorder that causes clubbing of the fingers, seen in people with lung cancer
• sarcoidosis – a rare condition that causes small patches of tissue to develop in the organs

Page last reviewed: 4 April 2019
Next review due: 4 April 2022

Joint pain, like delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS), is one of many occasional side effects of an active lifestyle. It’s common to feel some tenderness in your joints, but it’s important to recognize the causes and be able to determine if your pain is serious or standard. It turns out that most perceived joint pain isn’t even joint pain. It’s pain coming from the muscles, ligaments, and tendons, explains Jacob Teitelbaum, M.D., an internist who specializes in fibromyalgia and pain. To further complicate things, there are many types of joint pain. However, the most common type, arthritis, is most typical in individuals over 50 years of age. Other types of joint pain are often from “pre-arthritis” conditions, explains Derek Ochiai, leading board-certified orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine doctor in Arlington, Virginia. These conditions can be common in young patients who are highly active.

If you’re an avid exerciser, you can expect some light pain in your joints and muscles. Pay attention to your pain, though. If you notice signs of persistent joint pain—especially if the following signs are present—see your doctor, stat.

You notice joint swelling.

If you start to notice redness or swelling, it’s likely due to inflammation in the joint area. “When a joint is inflamed, the body sends in cells to combat that inflammation, which can also lead to increased fluid retention in the area,” explains Karena Wu, P.T., owner of ActiveCare Physical Therapy. If you’re experiencing this swelling specifically in your fingers, you should schedule an appointment with your physician. It could signal rheumatoid arthritis or other autoimmune illnesses, according to Dr. Teitelbaum.

You experience joint stiffness, especially in the morning.

When you wake up, you might feel a little stiff. After all, you’ve been lying in the same position for a solid seven or more hours. However, if you’re feeling this stiffness specifically in your joints it may signal something more serious. “As the joint breaks down, and with the inflammatory process in play, the joint will be more difficult to move because of the increased pain and swelling,” says Dr. Wu. “If the joint is not moved for a prolonged period of time, it will be difficult to get it started to move, so activities like sleeping will lead to morning stiffness in the joint.”

You’re limping.

If you’re limping as a result of joint pain, and it persists, clearly there’s something wrong. “This means that your pain is bad enough that your body is sacrificing efficient biomechanics to decrease pressure on that joint,” explains Dr. Ochiai. “New onset limping should be evaluated if it lasts more than a day or so.”

You hear “crunching.”

Although not always cause for concern, if you hear crunching with the sound of joint movement, you should get checked out by your physician. “Crunching sounds usually indicate an incongruity or instability within a joint. It’s a frequent finding as joint pain progresses,” explains Taylor Brown, M.D., an orthopedic surgeon at Houston Methodist.

You have trouble sleeping.

Occasional Finger Joint Pain

If your joint pain is so debilitating that it’s accompanied by fatigue and difficulty sleeping, fibromyalgia might be present. This chronic pain disorder affects the muscles and soft tissues and is characterized by tender points. It’s difficult to diagnose. However, if you believe that you’re suffering from fibromyalgia, it’s worth seeing a specialist who can accurately diagnose your condition.

Causes Of Joint Inflammation

You notice inflammation in a single digit.

If a single joint is hot and inflamed, especially your big toe, see your physician. “This occurs when uric acid is too high in the blood and crystallizes out in the joints (similar to when too much sugar is added to a drink and crystallizes out on the bottom),” explains Dr. Teitelbaum. “Getting this treated early in the process can save you weeks of grief.”

You have a fever or chills.

Joint Pain Supplements

If your joint pain is accompanied by fever or chills, it might signal an early sign of possible infection within a joint. Although uncommon, infection within a joint can become life and limb threatening, explains Dr. Brown. “Warmth and redness at the joint are very common with all causes of joint pain and are not specific to an infection.” In this situation, he recommends seeking medical help immediately.

Sporadic Joint Pain Causes

Some joint pain is common, some is more serious. Be mindful of any irritation and pay attention to the severity and length of time you feel pain. Talk to your doctor if your joint pain progresses to any of the above symptoms.