October 11, 2024

Inflammation: causes, symptoms & treatment

SOS: First aid tips for inflammation

Rest: Give yourself and your body rest and avoid strenuous treatment activities.

Drink a lot: Drink plenty of water as well as alkaline teas. The herbal teas serve the purification and support the excretion of waste products caused by the inflammatory process.

Healthy nutrition: Rely on vital and nutrient-rich food that protects the digestive system.

Cooling: If the inflamed areas are accessible, e.g. if they affect the skin, you can cool them. What is inflammation?

Inflammation is a reaction of the body’s defense system to a stimulus such as pathogens or a foreign body such as a splinter in the finger. Inflammation is therefore not only spoken of when a wound has become infected with bacteria, festers or heals poorly, but when the body tries to fight the harmful stimulus. Inflammation: types

Physicians differentiate inflammation, for example, with regard to specificity, place of origin or spread.

Timeline

  • Acute inflammation: Sudden inflammation
  • Subacute inflammation: Moderately rapid inflammation
  • Chronic inflammation: Permanent inflammation
  • Recurrent inflammation: Intermittent recurrent inflammation
  • Peracute inflammation: Very rapid inflammation

Spread

  • Local inflammation: Inflammation limited to limited tissue
  • Generalized inflammation: inflammation affecting the entire body
  • Metastatic inflammation: An inflammation consisting of malignant cells

Specificity

  • Specific inflammation: Typical inflammation
  • Non-specific inflammation: Atypical inflammation

Inflammation follows a certain regularity and can also be a symptom of other diseases. The following examples include diseases that result in acute or chronic inflammation.
Acute inflammation

Sunburn: Too much or too much light exposure can lead to skin burns. These show up as acute inflammation, the symptoms of which appear six to eight hours after sun exposure. The sunburn usually disappears after a week.

Insect bite: In a wasp or bee sting/bite, the poison of the insects penetrates the human skin. The affected area becomes inflamed in response to the dangerous substance. Typical symptoms include swelling, redness and pain at the puncture or bite site. In addition, itching, wheals or red dots may occur.

Pimples: A pimple is a clogged pore of skin caused by sebum. The so-called sebaceous glands produce sebum to keep the skin supple. If sebum and dead skin cells accumulate in a pore, bacteria can settle and inflammation occurs. The skin forms pus at this point to render the bacteria harmless. Primary chronic inflammation

All autoimmune diseases are primary chronic inflammations. The immune system classifies its own body tissue as harmful and fights it.

Crohn’s disease: This is an intestinal disease whose cause is not clear. Typical symptoms are diarrhea, weight loss, fistulas, joint pain, abscesses in the mouth and right-sided lower abdominal pain. Crohn’s disease occurs intermittently, patients suffer from a damaged immune system. The body finds it difficult to recognize bacteria and fight them accordingly. If bacteria penetrate the intestine, inflammatory reactions occur that damage the tissue locally. The inflammation can develop in the entire digestive tract, e.g. also in the mouth. The disease is not curable, but the symptoms can be treated well with medication.

Multiple sclerosis (short: MS): In this disease of the central nervous system, the human body destroys its own nerve fibers. MS relapses. The most common symptoms include sensory disturbances, chronic fatigue, optic nerve inflammation, intention tremor, headaches, depression and facial paralysis. Due to the destroyed nerve fibers, those affected suffer from various disabilities in the long term, which can severely restrict everyday life. Cure is not yet possible and the life expectancy of MS patients is up to 7 years below average, whereby the course of the disease is very individual.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA for short): This is a chronic, intermittent joint inflammation that can also affect the heart, lungs or eye. Patients suffer from symptoms such as night sweats, malpositions of hands and feet, morning stiffness, chronic pain, tenosynovitis and rheumatism nodules.

Type 1 diabetes: The term refers to a metabolic disease in which insulin-producing cells have been destroyed by an autoimmune reaction. As a result, the blood sugar content is too high. So far, no cure is possible, so those affected are dependent on insulin injections and regular blood sugar checks. In this way, organic consequential damage is avoided, because heart attack and kidney failure are among the most common causes of death of diabetes patients. The lack of blood sugar manifests itself by reduced performance, fatigue, increased urination and leg cramps. Physicians assume that viral infections or a genetic disposition are the cause. Secondary chronic inflammation

Tonsillitis: This is a viral or bacterial inflammation of the palatine tonsils, which occurs mainly in children and young adults. Patients complain of different symptoms that do not directly indicate the cause. Common non-specific symptoms include a general feeling of sickness, fever, headache and sore throat, difficulty swallowing, nausea and vomiting.

Conjunctivitis: In this disease, viruses and bacteria are possible causes. People of all ages can be affected. Symptoms are reddening of the affected eye, foreign body sensation, sensitivity and shyness of light, increased formation of secretions, burning, itching and pain.

Bronchitis: The inflammation of the bronchial mucosa in the lungs can occur both acute and chronic. It is mainly caused by viruses. In about 10% of cases, bacteria such as pneumococci or chlamydia are the cause. Patients suffer from cough, fever and headaches and body aches.

Periodontitis: This is an inflammation of the gums caused by bacterial deposits on the teeth. As a result, the tooth can no longer be properly held by the gums and tooth loss occurs. Bacteria can settle due to poor oral hygiene, tartar, hormonal change, genetic predispositions, smoking and metabolic diseases such as diabetes mellitus. The inflammation appears gradually and manifests itself by bleeding gums, redness and swelling of the affected area, regression of the gums as well as cold and heat sensitivity of the teeth.Inflammation: Causes

Inflammation can have different causes, all of which irritate or damage the tissue and ultimately inflame it. These causes include:

  • Bruises, strains or bruises from bumps or falls
  • Physical stimuli such as heat, frost or radioactive radiation
  • Chemical substances such as poisons and acids
  • Foreign bodies (e.g. wood splinters) that enter the body Metabolic breakdown products (e.g. uric acid crystals) formed in the body itself
  • Pathogenic microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi or parasites and their toxic excretions
  • Allergens such as pollen, animal hair, food, etc.

Inflammation: symptoms

  • Skin redness (Rubor)
  • Heat (Calor)
  • Swelling (tumor)
  • Pain (Dolor)
  • a disturbed function (functio laesa) such as inability to move a joint or impaired sense of smell
  • Fever
  • Sweat
  • Feeling sick

Not all symptoms occur with every inflammation. Some inflammations are completely inconspicuous and cause no symptoms at all.Inflammation: Diagnosis

Medical history: The doctor asks the patient about his condition and inquires about the type and duration of the symptoms. Also relevant is the medical history of the person concerned as well as that of the family. Already here the first indications of inflammation may emerge.