12

CHAPTER

197

Inflammation

Scratch your arm and within minutes the site turns red and hurts. This is your

body’s inflammatory response to tissue injury. Fortunately, most times the pain

goes away and the inflammation subsides relatively quickly and doesn’t interfere

with daily activities.

However, this isn’t always the case—especially when the injury is severe such

as arthritis, gout, toothache, or other painful conditions including menstrual

cramps. For these conditions, medication is needed to decrease the inflammation

so your daily activities are not interrupted.

In this chapter, you’ll learn about inflammation and the medications that are

prescribed to reduce the redness, swelling, warmth, and pain that is associated

with inflammation.

An Inside Look at Inflammation

Inflammation is the body’s protective response to injury to tissues. Injury

causes the release of three chemicals that stimulate a vascular response that force

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