Rheumatism[2]orrheumatic disorders are conditions causing chronic, often intermittent pain affecting the jointsorconnective tissue.[3] Rheumatism does not designate any specific disorder, but covers at least 200 different conditions, including arthritis and "non-articular rheumatism", also known as "regional pain syndrome" or "soft tissue rheumatism".[4][5] There is a close overlap between the term soft tissue disorder and rheumatism.[6] Sometimes the term "soft tissue rheumatic disorders" is used to describe these conditions.[7]
Many rheumatic disorders of chronic, intermittent pain (including joint pain, neck painorback pain) have historically been caused by infectious diseases. Their etiology was unknown until the 20th century and not treatable. Postinfectious arthritis, also known as reactive arthritis, and rheumatic fever are other examples.
In the United States, major rheumatic disorders are divided into 10 major categories based on the nomenclature and classification proposed by the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) in 1983.[10]
Blood and urine tests will measure levels of creatinine and uric acid to determine kidney function, an elevation of the ESR and CRP is possible. After a purine-restricted diet, another urine test will help determine whether the body is producing too much uric acid or the body isn't excreting enough uric acid. Rheumatoid factor may be present, especially in the group that is likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis. A fine needle is used to draw fluid from a joint to determine if there is any build-up of fluid. The presence of uric acid crystals in the fluid would indicate gout. In many cases there may be no specific test, and it is often a case of eliminating other conditions before getting a correct diagnosis.
The term rheumatism stems from the Late Latinrheumatismus, ultimately from Greek ῥευματίζομαι "to suffer from a flux", with rheum meaning bodily fluids, i.e., any discharge of blood or bodily fluid.
The English term rheumatism in the current sense has been in use since the late 17th century, as it was believed that chronic joint pain was caused by excessive flow of rheum which means bodily fluids into a joint.[15]
^Barnhart, Robert K. (1988). Barnhart, Robert K.; Steinmetz, Sol; Wilson, Halsey William (eds.). Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology. H. W. Wilson Company. The meaning of a disease of the joints is first recorded in 1688, because rheumatism was thought to be caused by an excessive flow of rheum into a joint thereby stretching ligaments
