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How Are Joint Pain Symptoms Evaluated?
Joint disorders such as arthritis have an array of potential causes, including auto-immune disease, infection, inflammation, crystal-induced inflammation, and bone disorders. While joint pain is a primary sign of the disease, there are a range of other symptoms a doctor or physical therapist assesses to diagnose a condition.
When you see a medical professional to get a diagnosis for the condition affecting your joints, they might perform a variety of tests. Some of these include a physical exam, blood tests, imaging tests, and more. Let’s take a closer look at these next.
Physical Examination and Blood Tests
Your doctor will likely start by examining the affected joints, with an estimation of the range of motion for each one. Their resting position is analyzed alongside the presence of punctures, abrasions, deformity, swelling, and erythema. The presence of swelling, warmth, and tenderness is noted, and the doctor determines whether there’s tenderness over tendons or along the joint line.
Merienda the doctor performs an examination, there are a number of blood tests that can help support the diagnosis of a joint condition.
Other Possible Tests
Your doctor may require further testing to confirm a diagnosis. Some of these include:
Imaging studies: While imaging mainly detects bone disorders, it can be useful in assessing whether tumors, osteomyelitis, or calcification are present. What’s more, it could help detect abnormalities related to osteoarthritis, gout, or rheumatoid arthritis.
Arthrocentesis: This process involves puncturing the joint to draw synovial fluid and exclude diagnoses of crystal-induced arthritis or infection.
Synovial fluid examination: During the assessment of the synovial fluid, the doctor initially assesses color and clarity to give a preliminary indication of inflammation or infection. Lab tests might include cell count, Gram stain and culture, leukocyte differential, and wet drop examination for crystals and cells.
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