What are the 2 types of arthritis?

There are over 100 types of arthritis, and they can be classified into two main types: inflammatory arthritis and degenerative arthritis.

1) Inflammatory arthritis occurs when the body's immune system mistakenly attacks the joints, causing inflammation and damage. This can be caused by a number of factors, including genetics, infection, and environmental triggers. Some common types of inflammatory arthritis include:

- Rheumatoid arthritis (RA): A chronic autoimmune disease that affects the joints, causing pain, swelling, stiffness, and fatigue.

- Psoriatic arthritis (PsA): A type of inflammatory arthritis that affects people with psoriasis, a skin condition that causes itchy, scaly patches.

- Ankylosing spondylitis (AS): A type of inflammatory arthritis that affects the spine, causing stiffness, pain, and inflammation.

2) Degenerative arthritis, also known as osteoarthritis (OA), is the most common type of arthritis. It occurs when the cartilage that cushions the ends of the bones wears down, causing pain, stiffness, and swelling. OA can affect any joint in the body, but it most commonly affects the knees, hips, spine, and hands.

Other types of arthritis include:

- Post-traumatic arthritis: Arthritis that develops after an injury to a joint.

- Infectious arthritis: Arthritis that is caused by an infection, such as Lyme disease or tuberculosis.

- Metabolic arthritis: Arthritis that is caused by a metabolic disorder, such as gout or pseudogout.

- Juvenile arthritis: Arthritis that occurs in children and adolescents.

- Septic arthritis: Arthritis that involves infection of the joint's synovial fluid, usually arising from a bloodstream infection caused by bacteria. Bacteria typically enter the joint by traveling through the bloodstream from another part of the body.

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