Infectious Arthritis Summary Most kinds of arthritis cause pain and swelling in your joints. Joints are places where two bones meet, such as your elbow or knee. Infectious arthritis is an infection in the joint. The infection comes from a bacterial, viral, or fungal infection that spreads from another part of the body. Symptoms of infectious arthritis include Intense pain in the joint Joint redness and swelling Chills and fever Inability to move the area with the infected joint One type of infectious arthritis is reactive arthritis. The reaction is to an infection somewhere else in your body. The joint is usually the knee, ankle, or toe. Sometimes, reactive arthritis is set off by an infection in the bladder, or in the urethra, which carries urine out of the body. In women, an infection in the vagina can cause the reaction. For both men and women, it can start with bacteria passed on during sex. Another form of reactive arthritis starts with eating food or handling something that has bacteria on it. To diagnose infectious arthritis, your health care provider may do tests of your blood, urine, and joint fluid. Treatment includes medicines and sometimes surgery. National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Find an Expert American College of Rheumatology American College of Rheumatology Arthritis Foundation Arthritis Foundation Arthritis Foundation: Local Office Directory Arthritis Foundation Find a Rheumatologist American College of Rheumatology National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Diagnosis and Tests Blood Culture Test American Association for Clinical Chemistry Bone X-Ray (Radiography) Array C-Reactive Protein (CRP) Test American Association for Clinical Chemistry Complete Blood Count American Association for Clinical Chemistry HLA-B27 Test American Association for Clinical Chemistry MRI of the Musculoskeletal System Array Reactive Arthritis Diagnosis Spondylitis Association of America Synovial Fluid Analysis American Association for Clinical Chemistry Clinical Trials ClinicalTrials.gov: Arthritis, Infectious National Institutes of Health ClinicalTrials.gov: Arthritis, Reactive National Institutes of Health Encyclopedia Culture – joint fluid Gonococcal arthritis Treatments and Therapies Easing Joint Pain: Are NSAIDs Right for You? Consumers Union of U.S. Joint Injection/Aspiration American College of Rheumatology Array Fungal arthritis HLA-B27 antigen Reactive arthritis Septic arthritis Viral arthritis Specifics HCV and Rheumatic Disease American College of Rheumatology Reactive Arthritis National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Reactive Arthritis Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research What Is Reactive Arthritis? National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Children Joint Aspiration (Arthrocentesis) Nemours Foundation Toxic Synovitis Nemours Foundation Start Here Joint Infection (Beyond the Basics) UpToDate Septic Arthritis Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research Journal Articles Infectious Arthritis
