Septic arthritis, also called infectious arthritis, is caused by an inflammation in the joints. Typically, septic arthritis affects the large joints -- shoulders, hips, and knees -- although smaller joints such as ankles and fingers may be affected. In a nutshell, septic arthritis occurs when a joint becomes infected. A germ such as a fungus, virus or bacterium causes the inflammation associated with septic arthritis.

The bacteria may affect the joint via a traumatic injury, which has left the joint exposed and vulnerable to infectious arthritis. But even minor injuries, such as punctures by a nail may cause septica.

Symptoms associated with septic arthritis often develop over a period of one to two weeks. If you have septic knee arthritis, for instance, you may suddenly experience pain in the knee area when you walk. Septic arthritis knee problems might go undiagnosed for a period of time.

To be diagnosed with septic arthritis, your doctor will conduct a battery of laboratory tests, conduct a physical examination of the affected joint and review your medical history.

Anyone, male or female, of any age may have septic arthritis. Children with septic arthritis may experience nausea and vomiting. Most always, people with septic arthritis have leakage of tissue fluid into the affected joint, which makes the joint extremely sensitive to touch. Most patients with septica have low-grade fever and chills.

Surgical procedures are the most common ways bacteria enter a joint causing infectious arthritis. In fact, following knee replacement and hip replacement surgery, people used to be extremely vulnerable to septic arthritis. Due to advances in medical technologies the chance to getting septic arthritis following surgery is much more slim in modern times.

You are more likely to have septic arthritis if you have sickle-cell anemia, an immune deficiency or severe kidney disease. Also, people who are exposed to plants, soil, animals and marine life are more likely to contract septic arthritis.

If you are a patient with sexually transmitted diseases such as gonorrhea and HIV infection, you are at high risk for having septic arthritis. People with, diabetes, some kinds of cancer, chronic rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and people who are intravenous drug users or alcoholics are also at risk.

The symptoms of septic arthritis are not easy to identify because they depend on what type of germ caused it. Moreover, your doctor might misdiagnose you as having similar conditions such as tumors, gout, or inflammatory arthritis.

People who have septic arthritis caused by a fungus experience fever and pain and swelling that may be in one area or all over the body. If your septic arthritis is caused by a bacterium, you will feel pain in just one spot and the disease will have a sudden onset along with fever and chills.

If septic arthritis is caused by a virus, you may have pain all over and no fever or a low-grade fever.

Since you may have septic arthritis along with other forms of arthritis or Lyme disease, your doctor will want to consult with other specialists to make sure he has given you an accurate diagnosis.

Because it's difficult to diagnose septic arthritis, your doctor will conduct laboratory testing which involves an arthrocentesis, a painful procedure that entails collecting fluid from the infected joints. Your physician may also order a biopsy of the synovial tissue near the joint if the fluid sample is negative.

Furthermore, urine, blood, or cervical mucus cultures may be taken to determine if a person has septic arthritis.

If you or a loved one needs to be treated for septic arthritis, expect several days of treatment in a hospital followed by medication and physical therapy.

Your physician will probably treat your septic arthritis with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. You may be given intravenous antibiotics are for a duration until the inflammation has subsided followed by oral antibiotics.

You will only need to undergo surgery for septic arthritis if you have not responded to medications and fluid must be drained from an infected joint.

Septic arthritis is not transmittable from one person to the other although the germs that cause it may be spread. About 70 percent of people recover from their septic arthritis without permanent joint damage. Early diagnoses and prompt treatment is essential.

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