18th January 2024

Infectious arthritis 

If the syndrome of polyarthritis is short-lived, lasting only from a few days to several weeks (rarely longer than 6 weeks), viral polyarthritis must be considered. Examples of organisms causing viral polyarthritis include Rubella, Parvovirus B19, hepatitis B and C (more commonly associated with arthralgias rather than polyarthritis) and Chikungunya.

Another example of an infectious arthritis is that of Lyme arthritis – a late manifestation of Lyme disease. This is characterised by intermittent or persistent inflammatory arthritis in a few large joints, most typically monoarthritis of the knee.