A Longer Look at Arthritis for Rehabilitation Nurses

Rehabilitation nurses will encounter patients with a variety of orthopedic conditions, both medical and surgical in nature. Arthritis is one of the medical orthopedic conditions commonly seen in the rehabilitation setting. Arthritis in rehabilitation patients may be a primary diagnosis and the cause of admission, or a secondary diagnosis and a chronic disease that the patient with a rehabilitation diagnosis “just happens to have.” There are more than 100 types of arthritis, with multiple risk factors and causes. This course will review six types of arthritis, including osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gouty arthritis, juvenile arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, and systemic lupus erythematosus. Risk factors, causes, symptoms, diagnostic tests, assessment parameters, course of the disease, treatment and the indications for rehabilitation will be discussed. The role of the rehabilitation nurse in prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and patient educations will be emphasized.