Reiter's syndrome is a chronic form of inflammatory arthritis wherein the following three conditions are combined

Reiter's syndrome is also called "reactive arthritis." It is felt that it involves the immune system reacting to the presence of bacterial infections in the genital, urinary, or gastrointestinal systems. Reiter's syndrome most frequently occurs in patients in their thirties or forties, but can occur at any age. The form of Reiter's syndrome appearing after genital infection occurs more frequently in males. The form that develops after bowel infection occurs in equal frequency in males and females. Reiter's syndrome is considered a systemic rheumatic disease. This means it can affect other organs than the joints, such as the eyes, mouth, skin, kidneys, heart, and lungs.

 

Reiter's syndrome shares many features with several other arthritic conditions, such as psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, and arthritis associated with Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. Each of these arthritic conditions can cause similar disease and inflammation in the spine, other joints, eyes, skin, mouth, and various organs. In view of their similarities and tendency to inflame the spine, these conditions are collectively referred to as "spondyloarthropathies."

 

Reiter's syndrome is felt in part to be genetic. There are certain genetic markers that are far more frequent in patients with Reiter's syndrome than in the normal population. For example, the HLA-B27 gene is commonly seen.  Even in patients who have the genetic background that predisposes them to developing Reiter's syndrome, exposure to certain infections seem to be required to trigger the onset of the disease. The most common bacteria that has been associated with this form of Reiter's syndrome is an organism called Chlamydia. Reiter's syndrome also occurs after infectious dysentery, with bacterial organisms in the bowel, such as Salmonella, Shigella, Yersinia, and Campylobacter. Typically, the arthritis develops one to three weeks after the onset of the bacterial infection. The symptoms of Reiter's syndrome can be divided into those which affect the joints and those which affect the non-joint areas. Typically the joints that become inflamed in Reiter's syndrome are the knees, ankles, feet, and wrists. The particular joints involved are usually asymmetric - one side of the body or the other is affected, rather than both sides simultaneously. The inflammation leads to stiffness, pain, swelling, warmth, and redness of the joints involved. Patients may develop inflammation of entire fingers or toes, which can give the appearance of a "sausage digit." This is also seen in patients with another type of arthritis associated with psoriasis, called psoriatic arthritis. The arthritis of Reiter's syndrome can be associated with inflammation of the spine, leading to stiffness and pain in the back or neck (characteristic of all of the spondyloarthropathies).

 

Cartilage can become inflamed, especially around the breastbone where the ribs meet in the front of the chest, this condition is called costochondritis. Muscles attach to the bones by tendons. In Reiter's syndrome, the tendon insertion points can become inflamed (tendonitis), tender, and painful when exercised. Non-joint areas that become inflamed and cause symptoms in Reiter's syndrome include the eyes, genitals, urinary tract (urethra, bladder and prostate gland), mouth lining, large bowel, and the aorta. Inflammation of the whites of the eye (conjunctivitis) and the iris of the eye (iritis) is frequently seen early in Reiter's syndrome and may be intermittent. When the whites of the eye are inflamed causing conjunctivitis, there may be no pain. When the colored part of the eye (iris) is inflamed, causing iritis, it can be very painful and especially worse when looking into bright lights. Urinary tract inflammation commonly involves the urethra, the tube that drains urine from the bladder. This inflammation (urethritis) can be associated with burning on urination and/or pus drainage from the end of the penis. The skin around the penis can become inflamed and scale.

 

The bladder and prostate gland can become inflamed, leading to an urge to urinate. The mouth can develop open sores (ulcerations) on the hard and soft palate, and even on the tongue. These may go unnoticed by the patient, as they are often painless. Inflammation of the large bowel (colitis) can cause diarrhea, or pus or blood in the stool. Inflammation of the aorta (aortitis) can be seen in a small percentage of patients who have Reiter's syndrome. It can lead to failure of the aortic valve of the heart, which can cause heart failure. The electrical conducting pathway of the heart can also become scarred in Reiter's syndrome, leading to irregular heartbeats (arrhythmias).

 

We recommend that you read and follow the protocol outlined in the article Factors Involved In Auto-Immune Disorders And Effective, Natural Treatment Protocols.  The remedies suggested are nutritionally balanced solutions that tend to raise overall health. They contain enzymes and many other naturally occurring phyto-nutrients shown to help reverse and prevent disease generally by optimizing the immune and hormonal systems.

 

We particularly recommend the addition of Plant Sterols and Sterolins to the diet.

 

Boron - a treatment for arthritis and helps with auto-immune reactions and possible parasites (one capsule per day)

 

Colloidal Silver (build up to at least half a glass twice daily) and Zell–Oxygen for the immune system.  This combination of which has been found to help overcome all types of infection.  Olive Leaf Capsules can also be used to fight infection, but we recommend the Colloidal Silver  as it calms the overactive or auto-immune reactions that are contributing to the disease.

 

Serrapepatse - a protein digesting enzyme found to be very effective in alleviating inflammation. (One capsule twice daily).

 

Hemp Oil - This contains the most balanced mixture of omega 3,6 and 9 of any single oil we know of. Supplying essential fatty acids has been found to help relieve inflammation throughout the body and specifically with arthritis and bowel inflammation. Hemp oil is used as a general health supplement for it’s multiple essential roles including cell membrane health.

 

Barley Grass Juice Powder, as well as having anti-inflammatory properties tones the health of the whole body via it’s nutritive and cleansing properties, whilst being non-stimulating in auto-immune disorders, of which Reiter's syndrome, may be considered one.

 

Please also refer to the article Adapting to the Regenerative Process