Reactive arthritis
Overview
Reactive arthritis is where your joints become sore and swollen after you've had an infection. It usually goes away within 6 months, but it can last longer.
Symptoms
The symptoms of reactive arthritis usually start around 1 to 4 weeks after an infection, such as food poisoning or a sexually transmitted infection (STI). Common symptoms of reactive arthritis include: sore, stiff and swollen jointsskin around painful joints might feel hot and look red (but redness can be harder to see on black and brown skin)feeling very tired It usually affects knees and feet, but your hands, elbows, spine and tendons around joints might also be affected. Other symptoms can include: mouth ulcerspain when peeingflaky skin, usually on your soles or palms, which might have yellow pus underneatha grey or white patchy rash on your penissticky, watery eyes (conjunctivitis)sore, red eyes with sensitivity to light and blurry vision
Causes
Reactive arthritis can happen after having an infection that's usually in your stomach (such asfood poisoning), or asexually transmitted infection (STI), such aschlamydia. Your joints later become swollen because your immune system begins to attack them by mistake. If the infection that causes reactive arthritis was very mild, you might not remember having it before your joint pain began.
Treatment
Treatment for reactive arthritis might include: medicines that reduce inflammation, such asNSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs)orsteroidsDMARDs (disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs) or biological therapies which reduce inflammation by changing the way your immune system worksphysical therapy, such asphysiotherapyantibiotics, if you still have the infection that may have caused the reactive arthritis Reactive arthritis usually goes away after 6 months. For some people it can come back, or lead to another type of arthritis which needs long-term treatment, such asosteoarthritisorankylosing spondylitis.
Prevention
Safe sex (condoms); Food hygiene.
When to see a doctor
See GP if: swollen joints after infection.