Arthritis: not just an old person’s disease
According to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOC), “Arthritis literally means ‘inflammation of a joint.’” This means, in most instances, the inflammation associated with the disease usually results from a breakdown in joint cartilage.
The AAOC lists several types of arthritic conditions. Osteoarthritis, the type that occurs in aging patients, is a result of wear and tear on the joint affected and is in at least one weight-bearing joint. Post-traumatic arthritis is a result of some injury sustained in the joint. Some types of arthritis, such as rheumatoid and psoriatic arthritis, are autoimmune diseases, which, according to the AAOC website, is a result of “the body’s immune system, which normally protects the body, begins to produce substances that attack the body.” In relationship to psoriatic arthritis, the AAOC estimates that about 48 percent of the cases of psoriasis are a result of the arthritic condition, many of which are undiagnosed.
According to the AAOC website, juvenile arthritis is an autoimmune disease and that, because it differs in nature from the adult rheumatic type, the term “juvenile rheumatoid arthritis” or “JRA” is no longer used by medical professionals. The Arthritis Foundation states, “Approximately 294,000 children under the age of 18 are affected by pediatric arthritis and rheumatologic conditions.”
Photos of elderly man and woman appearing in video clip courtesy of Ed Yourdon.
Powercat Robotics competing in FTC at UT Tyler
The Ford High School Powercat Robotics team is currently competing in the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) at UT Tyler. This qualifying tournament is offering students an opportunity to test their engineering, construction, programming and teamwork skills. Look for a complete wrap on the team’s performance in the competition as soon as the action is over and the scores have been tallied.
Engagement takes an active effort on the part of editors
Over the course of the past few weeks, research was begun in preparation for an upcoming article, a major multimedia publication, focusing on research into and treatment of juvenile arthritis, specifically juvenile psoriatic arthritis. Some of the goal of this initial research was to begin engaging readers and others in social media circles regarding the research being conducted. Social engagement and response has been limited via the site and other social media channels, but some is occurring, surprisingly, for so little actual effort in active engagement. (Please note, this site will, from time to time, point out its own shortfalls in either reporting or engaging readers. This is one of those times.)
One of the major engagements this site has accomplished is to begin following and being followed by the Arthritis Foundation on Twitter. While no active engagement has taken place, it is good to know that this organization is reaching out to begin a dialog with its own constituency.
A poll was posted to Fast Draw Media’s Facebook page. The question was simple. “Do you know someone with arthritis?” While simple and straightforward and not highly responded to as of this posting (it was posted last Friday), it is a step to further engage the audience in the discussion of the research being conducted.
A lot of wok remains to engage blog readers and to build an audience, but the efforts of recent research has shown engaging and building an audience takes the active effort of the blog editor. While that might seem a little simplistic, it is often taken for granted that successful blogs and sites are actively engaged with their audience, directly leading to and controlling its success.