This week Arthritis Radio host David Martin traveled to Harrisburg, PA to speak with Pennsylvania State Representative Jennifer Mann. She was diagnosed with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis at age 2. In this interview Jennifer discusses growing up with an invisible disease, being diagnosed with juvenile arthritis, serving as an elected official, the importance of physical activity and much more.
Many people associate gout with the royalty of long ago. There’s a reason for that. The root cause of gout — rich fatty foods — were the territory of the wealthy who oculd afford to buy them. Today, it can happen to anyone at any age.
Gout is actually a type of arthritis. The pain is the result of inflammation that occurs when crystals made of uric acid form deposits inside connective tissue and interferes with joint function.
What questions does this raise for you?
Rheumatoid Arthritis isn’t just a garden variety pain – it’s an autoimmune disorder whose cause isn’t known. What is known is that Rheumatoid Arthritis can lead to permanent disability at any age.
You have chronic pain yet you just can’t find its source. Your doctor can’t find it either, and yet it’s very real to you. You’ve probably been told that your pain is a Somatoform Disorder. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR) a somatoform disorder means that your pain symptoms are physical but don’t have any connection to a general medical condition.
Joint pain can be caused by a variety of diseases and conditions such as the various forms of arthritis, tendinitis, bursitis, or even fibromyalgia. Knowing what type of joint pain you have, and what may be causing that pain, can go a long way towards helping to reduce or eliminate your chronic pain.
Music is said to cool the savage beast. What about 
