There are many beliefs about rheumatism that are common among the public, but most of them do not reflect the truth. In this article, we will briefly touch upon some of them.
- Rheumatism is a disease of the elderly.
This belief is not true. Rheumatism is seen in middle-aged adults, teenagers, children and even babies, as well as the elderly. However, rheumatism seen at every age is different. While the most common rheumatisms in primary school children are febrile joint rheumatism, juvenile chronic arthritis, which means inflammatory rheumatism of childhood, and familial Mediterranean fever, the most common rheumatisms in young people in their 20s are spinal rheumatism, which we call spondyloarthritis in medical terms, Behçet's disease, and lupus, which is especially seen in young women. or SLE is the type of inflammatory rheumatism we call. Rheumatoid arthritis, one of the most common inflammatory rheumatism, and soft tissue-muscle rheumatism, which we call fibromyalgia, usually occur in middle-aged women. Calcification-type rheumatisms, which we call arthrosis or osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, commonly called osteoporosis, and inflammatory rheumatisms called gout, polymyalgia rheumatica, Sjögren's and temporal arteritis, are seen especially in the elderly. Although certain rheumatisms are more common in certain age groups, it should not be forgotten that many rheumatic diseases can be seen at almost any age. Approximately 15% of the patients who apply to the rheumatology clinic for rheumatism treatment are under the age of 20, and 40% are under the age of 40.
- Rheumatism does not kill, it makes you crawl.
This is a situation we hear frequently, but it is not valid for some rheumatism. Inflammatory and rheumatic diseases that can involve internal organs, such as vasculitis, SLE (systemic lupus erythematosus), scleroderma, myositis and Behçet's disease, can lead to early death of the patient if they are not treated well. Inflammatory rheumatism is like a fire, and if it is not extinguished or controlled properly, it can cause damage and even death, especially to the joints, the movement system, and sometimes to the kidneys, heart, blood, nervous system, lungs and liver. The statement "Rheumatism does not kill, it makes you crawl" does not apply to all rheumatism, but only to arthrosis. It may be valid for some non-inflammatory chronic rheumatisms, such as calcification-type rheumatisms, which we call calcification, and soft tissue-muscle rheumatisms, which we call fibromyalgia.
- There is no cure for rheumatism.
This statement is also absolutely not true. Firstly, not all rheumatism is chronic, that is, chronic. Non-chronic rheumatic diseases such as viral arthritis, acute rheumatic fever, reactive arthritis, tendon-ligament-muscle strains and mechanical waist and neck pain can be healed without leaving any scars with appropriate clinical approach and treatment. The idea that "there is no cure" for inflammatory chronic rheumatic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, SLE-systemic lupus erythematosus, vasculitis, and non-inflammatory chronic rheumatic diseases such as arthrosis and fibromyalgia is not correct. There have been significant developments in the treatment of rheumatic diseases in the last 30-40 years, and many new treatment approaches and drugs have come into widespread clinical use. With the contribution of a better understanding of the genetics of rheumatic diseases, their formation mechanisms, clinical findings and their effects on the patient's quality of life, today we can recognize rheumatic diseases much earlier, relieve the patient's complaints, especially pain, improve the quality of life, prevent the disease from causing damage to the joints and internal organs, and Finally, it has become possible to cure some rheumatic diseases, that is, to "eradicate the disease". Today, there is no curative treatment for some chronic diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, atherosclerosis, chronic bronchitis, dementia and schizophrenia, as well as some rheumatic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, SLE, scleroderma and arthrosis. However, this does not mean that the treatment for these diseases is not effective or does not work. With treatment in these diseases, it is possible to relieve pain, improve the patient's quality of life, stop the progression of the disease and prolong the patient's quality of life. For this purpose, the disease should be recognized as early as possible, the patient should be educated about the disease, the patient should be followed closely and the disease activity should be evaluated at frequent intervals, and the treatment should be adjusted according to the patient's individual condition and disease activity. It must be prevented. In addition, patients must comply well with treatment and be socially supported.
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