The Duke University Medical Center Book of Arthritis

This book is an excellent resource on arthritis and other inflammations of the joints and musculoskeletal system. That's right, as so many pains and inflammations are referred to as "arthritis" by laymen, this book goes beyond rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, and covers everything from Lupus to gout and even tendonitis. Part one of this book is entitled, "What's Happening to Me?" and covers key medical terms, joints and connective tissues, and what sorts of tests are used in reaching a diagnosis. Part two discusses the types of conditions, including symptoms, prognosis, treatment and outlook. Part three covers a wide range of treatments for arthritis, while part four discusses what is in the future. But, do not stop there! At the tail end of the book is a selection of frequently asked questions, and a list of helpful resources. OK, where do I start? Overall, I found this to be a great resource, one that helped me understand what was going on with my body, and what it meant. Now, admittedly, the edition I read was the 1992 edition, which means that it is far from up-to-date on the latest treatments. But, that said, it did help me enormously, and I am very glad that I have it. So, what I would say is this: if you are new to your experience with arthritis, then this is an excellent resource for you to have. But, if you have a more than minor problem with arthritis, and are looking for the latest information, then you might want to look elsewhere. For myself, I highly recommend this book.

This is an indispensable guide for anyone suffering from any type of arthritis, especially the auto-immune varieties like rheumatoid arthritis, SLE, Ankylosing Spondylitis, and Polymyalgia Rheumatica. It has wonderful sections on treating arthritis with drugs, rest, exercise, and diet as well as detailed descriptions of each of the arthritic conditions and their treatments.The only downside of this book is that it was printed in 1995, so there is no information about new treatments such as Enbrel. Still, if you have some form of arthritis this would be a good book to purchase for your reference shelf.