Reiter’s Syndrome, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Treatment And Related Conditions

By Kenneth Kee

Reiter's syndrome is also known as reactive arthritis
It has the triad of symptoms of urethritis, arthritis and uveitis
It cause stiffness of the spine especially in the morning
Pain in the back, knees, and toes may soon start coming

Reactive arthritis occur when a joint reacts to an infection
Infection of the urethra and gut can cause joint inflammation
Redness of the eye, no pain and no blurred vision is conjunctivitis
Redness of the eye, pain and blurring of vision usually means uveitis

A gene HLA-B27 is present; so is increase in the ESR rate
Urine test may show the presence of infection of the urinary tract
If there is evidence of infection an antibiotic is given
Rashes of small nodules on the soles is quite common

Treatment with pain killers will stop the joint pain
Exercise will also help increase the flexibility again
Steroids may be injected into painful joints to reduce inflammation
Immunosuppressants may be necessary to reduce autoimmune reaction

-An original poem by Kenneth Kee

Interesting Tips about the Reiter's Syndrome

A Healthy Lifestyle

1. Take a well Balanced Diet

2. The main goal of treatment of Reiter's syndrome is to identify and eradicate the underlying infectious source with the appropriate antibiotics if still present.

Otherwise, treatment is symptomatic for each problem.
a. Analgesics particularly NSAIDs, sulfasalazine, steroids and immunosuppressants may be needed for patients with severe reactive symptoms that do not respond to any other treatment.
b. Antibiotics -- if you still have the bacterial infection that triggered Reiter syndrome.
c. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) -- lower inflammation.
These drugs include ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), naproxen (Aleve), and prescription drugs.

d. Corticosteroids -- may be injected into painful joints to reduce inflammation.

e. Drugs that suppress the immune system -- such as sulfasalazine or methotrexate; may be given in more serious cases.

f. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors -- these drugs block a protein that causes inflammation in the body.
They may be used in more severe cases and are also used to treat rheumatoid arthritis.
TNF inhibitors include etanercept (Enbrel), infliximab (Remicade), and adalimumab (Humira)

3. Keep bones and body strong

Bone marrow produces our blood

Eat foods rich in calcium like yogurt, cheese, milk, and dark green vegetables.

Eat foods rich in Vitamin D, like eggs, fatty fish, cereal, and fortified milk.

Eat food rich in Vitamins B and C such as green vegetables and fruits

Zinc and other minerals are important to the body

4. Get enough rest and Sleep

Avoid stress and tension

5. Exercise and stay active.

It is best to do weight-bearing exercise such as walking, jogging, stair climbing, dancing, or lifting weights for 21⁄2 hours a week.

One way to do this is to be active 30 minutes a day at least 5 days a week.

Begin slowly especially if a person has not been active.

6. Do not drink more than 2 alcohol drinks a day for a man or 1 alcohol drink a day for a woman.

Alcohol use also increases the chance of falling and breaking a bone.

Alcohol can affect the neurons and brain cells.

Sensitivity of the nerves to the bone may be affected

7. Stop or do not begin smoking.

It also interferes with blood supply to the bone and spine.

Reiter’s Syndrome

Some people had arthritis, urethritis and conjunctivitis at the same time.

This triad of symptoms became known as Reiter's syndrome.

Some people use the term Reiter's syndrome for all cases of reactive arthritis.

Some people use the term Reiter's syndrome only when the three classical symptoms of urethritis, arthritis and conjunctivitis occur.

Some people use the term Reiter's syndrome to mea

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kenneth Kee
• Release date: Jan 17, 2015
• ISBN: 9781311567536

Kenneth Kee

Medical doctor since 1972.Started Kee Clinic in 1974 at 15 Holland Dr #03-102, relocated to 36 Holland Dr #01-10 in 2009.Did my M.Sc (Health Management ) in 1991 and Ph.D (Healthcare Administration) in 1993.Dr Kenneth Kee is still working as a family doctor at the age of 74However he has reduced his consultation hours to 3 hours in the morning and 2 hours inthe afternoon.He first started writing free blogs on medical disorders seen in the clinic in 2007 on http://kennethkee.blogspot.com.His purpose in writing these simple guides was for the health education of his patients which is also his dissertation for his Ph.D (Healthcare Administration). He then wrote an autobiography account of his journey as a medical student to family doctor on his other blog http://afamilydoctorstale.blogspot.comThis autobiography account “A Family Doctor’s Tale” was combined with his early “A Simple Guide to Medical Disorders” into a new Wordpress Blog “A Family Doctor’s Tale” on http://ken-med.com.From which many free articles from the blog was taken and put together into 1000 eBooks.He apologized for typos and spelling mistakes in his earlier books.He will endeavor to improve the writing in futures.Some people have complained that the simple guides are too simple.For their information they are made simple in order to educate the patients.The later books go into more details of medical disorders.He has published 1000 eBooks on various subjects on health, 1 autobiography of his medical journey, another on the autobiography of a Cancer survivor, 2 children stories and one how to study for his nephew and grand-daughter.The purpose of these simple guides is to educate patient on health disorders and not meant as textbooks.He does not do any night duty since 2000 ever since Dr Tan had his second stroke.His clinic is now relocated to the Buona Vista Community Centre.The 2 units of his original clinic are being demolished to make way for a new Shopping Mall.He is now doing some blogging and internet surfing (bulletin boards since the 1980's) startingwith the Apple computer and going to PC.The entire PC is upgraded by himself from XT to the present Pentium duo core.The present Intel i7 CPU is out of reach at the moment because the CPU is still expensive.He is also into DIY changing his own toilet cistern and other electric appliance.His hunger for knowledge has not abated and he is a lifelong learner.The children have all grown up and there are 2 grandchildren who are even more technically advanced than the grandfather where mobile phones are concerned.This book is taken from some of the many articles in his blog (now with 740 posts) A Family Doctor’s Tale.Dr Kee is the author of:"A Family Doctor's Tale""Life Lessons Learned From The Study And Practice Of Medicine""Case Notes From A Family Doctor"

Book preview

Reiter’s

Syndrome,

A

Simple

Guide

To

The Condition,

Treatment

And

Related Conditions

by

Dr Kenneth Kee

M.B.,B.S. (Singapore)

Ph.D (Healthcare Administration)

Copyright Kenneth Kee 2015 Smashwords Edition

Published By Kenneth Kee at Smashwords.com

Dedication

This book is dedicated

To my wife Dorothy

And my children

Carolyn, Grace

And Kelvin

This book describes the Reiter’s Syndrome or Reactive arthritis, Treatment and Related Conditions or in vernacular terms

(What You Need to treat Reiter’s Syndrome)

This eBook is licensed for the personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader.

If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy.

Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Introduction

Ode to Reiter's Syndrome

Reiter's syndrome is also known as reactive arthritis

It has the triad of symptoms of urethritis, arthritis and uveitis

It cause stiffness of the spine especially in the morning

Pain in the back, knees, and toes may soon start coming

Reactive arthritis occur when a joint reacts to an infection

Infection of the urethra and gut can cause joint inflammation

Redness of the eye, no pain and no blurred vision is conjunctivitis

Redness of the eye, pain and blurring of vision usually means uveitis

A gene HLA-B27 is present; so is increase in the ESR rate

Urine test may show the presence of infection of the urinary tract

If there is evidence of infection an antibiotic is given

Rashes of small nodules on the soles is quite common

Treatment with pain killers will stop the joint pain

Exercise will also help increase the flexibility again

Steroids may be injected into painful joints to reduce inflammation

Immunosuppressants may be necessary to reduce autoimmune reaction

-An original poem by Kenneth Kee

Interesting Tips about the Reiter's Syndrome

A Healthy Lifestyle

1. Take a well Balanced Diet

2. The main goal of treatment of Reiter's syndrome is to identify and eradicate the underlying infectious source with the appropriate antibiotics if still present.

Otherwise, treatment is symptomatic for each problem.

a. Analgesics particularly NSAIDs, sulfasalazine, steroids and immunosuppressants may be needed for patients with severe reactive symptoms that do not respond to any other treatment.

b. Antibiotics -- if you still have the bacterial infection that triggered Reiter syndrome.

c. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) -- lower inflammation.

These drugs include ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), naproxen (Aleve), and prescription drugs.

d. Drugs that suppress the immune system -- such as sulfasalazine or methotrexate; may be given in more serious cases.

e. Corticosteroids -- may be injected into painful joints to reduce inflammation.

f. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors -- these drugs block a protein that causes inflammation in the body.

They may be used in more severe cases and are also used to treat rheumatoid arthritis.

TNF inhibitors include etanercept (Enbrel), infliximab (Remicade), and adalimumab (Humira)

3. Keep bones and body strong

Bone marrow produces our blood

Eat foods rich in calcium like yogurt, cheese, milk, and dark green vegetables.

Eat foods rich in Vitamin D, like eggs, fatty fish, cereal, and fortified milk.

Eat food rich in Vitamins B and C such as green vegetables and fruits

Zinc and other minerals are important to the body

4. Get enough rest and Sleep

Avoid stress and tension

5. Exercise and stay active.

It is best to do weight-bearing exercise such as walking, jogging, stair climbing, dancing, or lifting weights for 2½ hours a week.

One way to do this is to be active 30 minutes a day at least 5 days a week.

Begin slowly especially if a person has not been active.

6. Do not drink more than 2 alcohol drinks a day for a man or 1 alcohol drink a day for a woman.

Alcohol use also increases the chance of falling and breaking a bone.

Alcohol can affect the neurons and brain cells.

Sensitivity of the nerves to the bone may be affected

7. Stop or do not begin smoking.

It also interferes with blood supply to the bone and spine.

Chapter 1

Reiter’s Syndrome

What is Reiter's syndrome?

Some