Highlights
- •Monoarthritis or oligoarthritis in patients in primary and acute care settings may result from several different causes, and their treatments vary.
- •Accurate assessment and management of reactive arthritis protect many patients from developing destructive arthritis and disability.
- •Obtaining a complete history, including travel, infections in the past 6 weeks, and sexual history is an essential aspect of clinical decision making and creating a plan of care and appropriate referral.
Abstract
Reactive arthritis develops as a sequela of a remote infection, usually of the gastrointestinal
or genitourinary tract. The presence of acute arthritis and absence of specific diagnostic
test markers can lead to misdiagnosis. Prompt recognition and proper management prevent
reactive arthritis from progressing to a chronic destructive arthritis. The nurse
practitioner's familiarity with reactive arthritis, signs and symptoms, diagnostic
criteria, and treatment regimen promote early intervention for achieving the best
outcomes, including remission.
Keywords
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References
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Biography
Sijimol Mathew, DNP, ACNP-BC, is a nocturnal program nurse practitioner at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, and can be contacted at [email protected]
Article info
Publication history
Published online: March 14, 2023
Footnotes
In compliance with standard ethical guidelines, the author reports no relationships with business or industry that would pose a conflict of interest.
Identification
Copyright
© 2023 Published by Elsevier Inc.
