Joint Inflammation

Repeated trauma or stress to the joint, incurred during everyday use, athletic training, or performance, is often the initiating cause of joint inflammation. The familiar symptoms — lameness, swelling, and heat — are usually the result of inflammation in the synovial membrane and joint capsule.

The initial inflammation usually involves only the soft tissue structures of the joint (synovial membrane/joint capsule), and cartilage damage is generally not present at this early stage. The synovial membrane responds to injury by becoming inflamed, a condition referred to as synovitis. This inflammation allows leukocytes, or white blood cells, which are normally filtered out of the joint, to invade the joint space.

The inflamed synovial membrane and the leukocytes release destructive enzymes such as free radicals, cytokines, and prostaglandins, all of which are potentially damaging to the articular cartilage.

Left untreated, or allowed to recur repeatedly, these inflammatory mediators produced by the inflamed joint have a degrading or damaging effect upon the cartilage.

Learn More: Cartilage Degradation