Reiter’s syndrome, also known as reactive arthritis, is a form of arthritis which occurs as a reaction to the infection in the body. This disease may be caused by the sexually transmitted infections including Chlamydial infection or by the gastro-intestinal infection such Salmonellosis or Shigellosis. It can affect various body parts and give rise to arthritis (inflammation of joints), conjunctivitis (inflammation of eye lining) and urethritis (inflammation of urinary tract). Treatment for Reiter’s syndrome depends on which body part is involved.
The main purpose of treatment for rheumatoid arthritis is to manage the symptoms of the disease, to reduce the stiffness and pain and to prevent the joint damage. As different organs including joints, eyes, skin, genitals and mucus membrane are affected by this disease, you should seek the treatment from various specialists such as ophthalmologist, rheumatologist, urologist, dermatologist and gynecologist.
The treatment for rheumatoid arthritis is a combination of medications and non-drug approaches. Drug approaches involve a large variety of medications that are used single or in combination. The non-drug approaches include hydrotherapy, physical therapy, relaxation therapy, occupational therapy, heat and cold treatments. Different medications used for the treatment are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen, tolmetin (Tolectin), piroxicam (Feldene) and indomethacin (Indocin), corticosteroids like prednisone, immunosuppressant like methotrexate and antibiotics to treat the bacterial infections.
Besides these medications, there are other advantageous treatment options for Reiter’s syndrome. Some gentle range-of-motion and strengthening exercises are beneficial to maintain or improve the joint functions, to build up the muscles, decrease the stiffness and improve the flexibility of joints. In addition to this, dietary and nutritional supplements like glucosamine, vitamin C, omega-3 fatty acid are found to be effective for the treatment for Reiter’s syndrome.
You can also try some herbal remedies which can be used long-term without any side-effect. The herbs can be used in the form of dried extracts, alcohol extracts or glycerin extracts. The herbs like bromelain, turmeric, white willow and licorice are found to be effective to reduce inflammation.
Homeopathy is one of the best alternatives in arthritis treatment. Rhus tox is useful to reduce joint stiffness, Arsenicum album can be used to treat burning pain in urinary tract, while sulphur is beneficial to treat all kind of burning pain including conjunctivitis accompanied by digestive complains. In addition to this, acupuncture is another effective therapy which can help to stimulate the immune system and reduce pain. Besides these treatment options, short-term bed rest is advantageous to reduce the inflammation and pain of arthritis.