ABSTRACT
Musculoskeletal disorders are burdens to modern society, and they account for a considerable amount of sick-listing and permanent work disability. Disorders of the spinal column are common, while arthritis and tendinitis are more common in the extremities. Arthritis may have a systemic rheumatic inflammatory origin and cause inflammation in several joints across the life span. Both rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis exhibit inflammatory and degenerative signs. Rheumatoid arthritis may be aggressive and result in severe inflammation and eventually joint erosions, but the development of pharmaceutical agents like tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) inhibitors (infliximab, etanercept, etc.) has brought new possibilities for inhibiting inflammatory processes, pain, and disability. In this chapter, we will focus more on osteoarthritis and tendinitis, which seem to exhibit more similarities than differences.
