Question:
Thank
you for your reply.
I recently
had to go to ER.
The problem
is now on one foot (left) it became swollen and very painful.
I could
not even walk.
Because
I've develop a rash around my nose bridge Lupus was ruled out.
I was
given pain medication and sent home with a referral to rheumatology.
Could
all these symptoms be related? And can rheumatologic problems be managed?
I feel
so helpless.
Willie
Answer:
Dear
Willie,
Rheumatologic
problems are becoming more prevalent in the aging and increasingly
overweight Western population.
Many
such conditions are chronic, and most people concerned have problems
with more than one anatomical joint region, resulting in cumulatively
increased problems with performing daily tasks.
Management
is complex because of the chronic nature of many of these conditions,
the need for regular assessment of disease impact, the individual's
responses to the disease and its treatment, the presence of co-morbidities,
and the lack of well-designed studies of long-term outcome to guide
treatment.
There
are significant issues about how to monitor outcomes in routine practice,
and many outcome measures have been developed for use in clinical
trials.
Principles
of modern management include involvement of people in their own care,
early intervention, and the need to consider a multidisciplinary approach.
Most
conditions will require combinations of one or more non-pharmacological
therapies (especially muscle strengthening and aerobic exercise) and
pharmacological agents, with attention given to appropriate timing
of surgical interventions.
Rheumatology
is an ever-changing specialty in which the amount of available information
is growing daily and spread across a myriad of books, journals, and
websites.
The book
"The Oxford Desk Reference: Rheumatology" brings this information
together in an easy-to-use format.
This
essential resource combines up-to-date, relevant, evidence-based information
with the latest guidelines and the experience of senior consultants.
