Types of Arthritis: Osteoarthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis and More

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Arthritis is a broad medical term that means swelling and inflammation in the joints. It is not a single disease but a concise word that defines hundreds of diseases that cause pain, stiffness, tenderness, reduced mobility, warmth, or redness in the joints. In a healthy joint, there is a smooth, rubbery layer of cushion, known as cartilage, that protects our bones from rubbing against each other. When you have arthritis, this protective layer wears down, or the immune system mistakenly attacks it, causing joint pain.

Types of Arthritis

The most common conditions include the following: 

Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis. It is caused by the wear and tear or damage of joint cartilage between the bones. Cartilage is the protective layer of the bones, which helps protect them from any sort of damage. Healthy cartilage allows joints to move smoothly, but when it gets torn down, the bones may begin to grind against each other. This can lead to joint pain, swelling, and reduced mobility in a person. 

In Ayurveda, OA is called Sandhigatavata, which is caused by an imbalance in the Vata dosha, controller of air and movement in the body. Another factor that is responsible for joint pain is weak digestion. When digestion is weak, the food is not processed properly; it creates sticky waste, Ama, in the body. These hidden toxins travel through the spaces of your joints and get stuck inside them, causing pain and inflammation. Check out our Overview of Osteoarthritis page for more.

Rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune condition in which the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks the body. It usually happens when the body’s immune system doesn't work properly and attacks the lining of the joints, called synovium. This disease commonly affects hands, knees, or ankles and causes pain on both sides of the body, such as both wrists or both knees. This chronic condition causes inflammation, joint deformity, and also affects other parts of the body such as the eyes, skin, lungs, or heart. 

In Ayurveda, RA is called Amavata, which is caused by weak digestion. When your food is not able to be digested properly because of weak digestion, it creates a toxic waste in your body, known as Ama. Another factor that is responsible is the imbalance in the Vata Dosha (governs air and movement. It pushes the toxic waste into your joints, which causes pain, swelling, and redness. Check out our Overview of Rheumatoid Arthritis page for more.

Other common types

Gout 

Gout is a very painful type of arthritis that usually strikes suddenly, often in the middle of the night. It happens when your body has too much uric acid, a waste product of the body. Gout mainly affects the big toe of your leg, but it can also develop in other parts of the body. The joint quickly becomes red, swollen, and so sensitive that even a mild touch causes severe pain. In Ayurveda, it is known as Vatarakta and happens when there is an imbalance in the Vata dosha, and it pushes heated, toxic blood into the joints, usually triggered by poor digestion or a bad lifestyle.

Psoriatic Arthritis

This type of joint pain is directly linked to psoriasis, an immune condition that causes red, itchy, and scaly patches on the skin. In psoriatic arthritis, the confused immune system attacks both the skin and the inner lining of the joints. It often causes your entire fingers or toes to swell up, and it can also cause deep pain in your lower back or heels. In Ayurveda, this happens when deep-seated toxins (Ama) disrupt both the blood and the bone tissues at the exact same time. Managing it requires cleaning the blood to heal the skin and the sore joints together.

Ankylosing Spondylitis

Ankylosing spondylitis is a specific type of immune arthritis that primarily attacks the spine. It causes severe, chronic swelling between your spinal bones, leading to deep lower back pain and extreme stiffness, especially in the morning. Over time, if the swelling is not stopped, the body tries to heal itself by growing new bone. This can cause the bones in your spine to completely fuse together. Ayurveda views this as a severe buildup of stiff, dry Vata energy locking up the back. Keeping the spine moving daily and reducing internal swelling are the most important steps to prevent permanent fusing.

Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis

Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) is a common type of chronic arthritis that affects children below the age of 16 and can affect any part of the child's body. JIA is an autoimmune disease in which the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks the synovium, the lining of the joints. This causes joint pain and inflammation in the hands, joints, fingers, legs, ankles, and other parts of the body. In Ayurveda, JIA is called Amavata Vyadhi, which is directly linked with weak digestion. When a child’s stomach struggles to break down the food, it creates a heavy, sticky, and toxic waste, known as Ama. Another factor that is responsible for the joint pain in children is an imbalance in the Vata dosha (which governs air and movement in the body). An imbalance in Vata pushes the toxic waste into the joint space, which causes joint pain. 

Pattern differences

Why One Treatment Does Not Fix Every Disease?

In Ayurveda, arthritis is not considered a single disease that can be fixed by one single pill or syrup. The treatment plan is completely based on which specific energy (Vata, Pitta, or Kapha) is out of balance in your body.  For example, if your joints feel dry, cold, and make a popping or cracking sound, it means your Vata energy is too high. Then the treatment will focus on deeply lubricating the right bones wth arm, heavy herbal oil massages.

However, if your joints are red hot to the touch and heavily swollen, it means sticky waste ama and fiery heat are trapped inside your body. If you try to rub warm oil on this specific type of swelling, the heat and pain will actually get much worse. Instead, the doctor must completely skip the massage first and focus on an internal cooling cleanse to flush out the toxin sludge. 

This is why an Ayurvedic practitioner or doctor needs to understand your unique symptoms first before deciding if your joints need to be warmed up, oiled, or cooled down and detoxed.

Diagnosis of Arthritis

To confirm the diagnosis, a regular doctor will ask you about your symptoms and will do your physical and medical examination. They may ask you about a blood test to check the markers of inflammation or a confused immune system in your blood. They may also take X-rays or an MRI to check your bones. This will help in This shows the that the joint is dried out or rubbing together, or if the cartilage is damaged or not because of the severe swelling.

An Ayurvedic doctor will look at your prakriti, which of the body’s internal energies (Vata, Pitta & Kapha) is imbalanced. They will check your pulse (Nadi Pariksha) to see how energy and blood are flowing in your body. They will ask detailed questions about your digestion; if you have constipation, bloating, or gas, it means that Ama is building up. They will also check your tongue in the morning; if it has a white, thick coating, then it means there is a buildup of toxins in the body.

Choose A Type-Specific Guide

Since every kind of joint pain acts differently in the body, you cannot rely on a single treatment to fix every disease. Select your specific type of arthritis below to know your healing guide for your condition:

• Osteoarthritis: In this type, learn how to properly lubricate dry joints and how to naturally build your worn-down cartilage
• Rheumatoid Arthrites (RA): In this, discover how to safely remove the toxic waste and calm down an overactive immune system
• Gout: First, find out how to cool down your blood and effectively clear out trapped uric acid and crystals.
• Psoriatic Arthritis: In this, get targeted relief strategies for joint swelling and uncomfortable skin flare-ups.
• Ankylosing Spondylitis: In this, Access specific Ayurvedic therapies designed to ease deep stiffness in your lower back and spine
• Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA): Explore a safe and wholly customized healing approach designed specifically for growing children.

References

Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis - StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf 

Gout - StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf

Psoriatic Arthritis - StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf  

Ankylosing Spondylitis - StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf

Osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis: A comparative review of pathophysiology, diagnosis and evolving management - PubMed