Differential diagnosis of joint pain in clinical practice

Pain in the joints, spine, and associated soft tissues is a common complaint among patients. The book is a practical guide to how to recognize and treat various forms of painful joint conditions in everyday clinical practice. A team of authors specializing in rheumatology, orthopedics, and spondylosurgery participated in the preparation of the book. The second edition is updated, revised, and includes new chapters on painful soft tissue conditions.
The book is divided into a general and a special part. The first part describes the definition and causes of a painful joint, with attention paid to the medical history, clinical picture, basics of physical examination and diagnostic maneuvers. Specific laboratory tests and imaging methods that contribute to the diagnosis of inflammatory and systemic rheumatic diseases are listed.
In a special section, individual nosological units are described according to specific joints. The arm is mentioned in separate chapters, Elbow, hand and wrist, hip, knee, the hock with the joints of the foot and ankle, and the spine with the sacroiliac joints. Causes of joint pain based on selected traumatic causes are discussed, degenerative, inflammatory and systemic diseases, diseases associated with or directly caused by infections, pain caused by cancer, congenital developmental defects, some neurological, vascular, metabolic or other rare conditions. Emphasis is placed on distinguishing individual causes, from common ones to less common and rare diseases affecting the musculoskeletal system.
The book is intended for doctors who deal with the diagnosis and treatment of musculoskeletal diseases, primarily for rheumatologists, orthopedists and rehabilitation doctors. Due to the overlap in the issue of musculoskeletal diseases, it is also suitable for general practitioners, internists, but also doctors from other fields.