Charcot's joints
Charcot’s joints are joints which have been damaged by continued use despite ongoing processes of inflammation, because the fibres that carry the pain signals from the joint have been damaged, and the patient is unaware of a problem. The physician Charcot first described these joints in relationship to the disease of syphilis, but now they are much more commonly a result of damage to sensory nerves by diabetes mellitus (see peripheral neuropathy in the muscle and nerve section). The joint most commonly affected is the knee, which becomes swollen and unstable, and X-rays show severe osteoarthritis. The knee may need to be replaced. There is no treatment for diabetic neuropathy.
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