Anyone who has had the flu or a cold is familiar with body aches. But there are other reasons why we sometimes have pain in our limbs without a fever. What causes headaches and body aches and what can be done.
With aching limbs, every movement of the arms and legs becomes a torture. And the pain can often be felt even at rest – it often comes from the muscles. They are usually a symptom of an infectious disease – for example, a flu, cold or gastrointestinal infection. As a rule, other complaints then come along, for example severe headaches, exhaustion and the feeling of no longer having any strength.
If there is no infection behind the aching limbs, it may just be a harmless sore muscles. For example after an unusual or intense sporting activity. Sometimes, however, diseases in the joints are also the cause of painful arms and legs. These include osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis (simply rheumatism).
Phlebitis to Heart Attack: Dangerous Triggers
If the pain occurs in isolation in only one arm or leg, it can also be a signal for a so-called cervical vertebra syndrome (cervical spine syndrome), for a shoulder-hand syndrome, but also for an angina pectoris attack or a heart attack. Leg pain, on the other hand, occurs, for example, in the context of phlebitis, weak veins or a thrombotic artery occlusion (arterial occlusive disease).
Prolonged body aches and pains from unexplained causes that do not go away should be clarified by a doctor.
Limb Pain: Variety of Causes
There are various causes for body aches. They are often associated with the following infectious diseases:
cold (flu-like infection): A cold, which should not be confused with a real flu (influenza), catches many people several times a year. The triggers are cold viruses. Possible symptoms are body aches, headaches, fatigue, exhaustion, decreased performance, sore throats, runny nose and cough.
Flu (influenza): It is not as harmless as many people suspect. In contrast to the common cold, the symptoms set in suddenly and very violently. A normal cold is usually milder. Influenza is triggered by flu viruses. Body aches, headaches, fever, fatigue, tiredness, a strong feeling of illness, cough and sore throat are typical here too.
COVID-19: An infection with the novel coronavirus can have a variety of symptoms, including pain in the limbs. If you suspect that you should contact your family doctor by phone!
Inflammation of the lungs (pneumonia): It is usually caused by bacteria, such as pneumococci. It is often preceded by another infectious disease, such as the flu. Pneumonia usually begins with chills, fever (which can rise to a high), and feeling very sick. In addition, there are sweats, headaches, body aches, fatigue, fatigue, cough, bad breath, breathing problems and chest pain when inhaling.
Glandular fever (mononucleosis): The disease is caused by the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), which almost everyone carries with them. Most of the time, mononucleosis occurs when you first come into contact with the virus. Therefore, the disease is popularly known as the kissing disease. Possible symptoms are increased body temperature, headache, body aches, swelling of the lymph nodes – especially in the throat area – bad breath and itching. As a rule, Pfeiffer's glandular fever is harmless.
Gastrointestinal infection: An infection of the digestive tract with germs also manifests itself in pain in the limbs, headaches, tiredness and fatigue, fever, pronounced feeling of illness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea.
mumps: The "goat Peter" is one of the classic teething problems; The trigger is the mumps virus.
Measles (Morbilli): They are highly contagious and dangerous. They are among the infectious diseases that typically occur in childhood if one is not vaccinated; measles virus is the culprit.
Early Summer Meningo Encephalitis (TBE): The cause of this infectious disease are TBE viruses, which are transmitted by a tick bite. With TBE, the brain and meninges are inflamed. Possible TBE symptoms are flu-like symptoms with very severe headaches and body aches, but also neck stiffness, nausea, vomiting and increased sensitivity to light.
Inflammation of the kidney pelvis (pyelonephritis): The disease usually occurs as part of a urinary tract infection, when the germs rise from the urinary tract into the kidneys. Patients experience a pronounced feeling of illness, fever, severe headache, severe pain in the limbs, chills, pain when urinating, flank pain and back pain.
Relapsing fever: It is caused by bacteria – the Borrelia; relapsing fever can be transmitted by ticks or lice.
malaria: Infection with unicellular parasites, the plasmodia. They are transmitted through the bite of the Anopheles mosquito.
Joint disease like rheumatoid arthritis (rheumatism) and age-related wear and tear on the joints (arthrosis); It is typical of joint diseases that patients suffer from stiffness of the joints, which often occurs after long periods of rest ("morning stiffness").
Bone loss (Osteoporosis)
Polyneuropathy: damage to several nerves, for example due to diabetes or chronic alcohol abuse
Raynaud's disease: Raynaud's syndrome is a specific form of circulatory disorders that primarily affect the fingers.
Medication: Joint pain can occur as a side effect.
Limb pain diagnosis: this is how the doctor proceeds
At the beginning of the diagnosis of limb pain there is always a detailed conversation between the doctor and the patient, in which he asks him about his symptoms and his medical history (anamnesis). The accompanying symptoms are also important for the doctor in order to track down the cause of the pain in the extremities. For example, symptoms such as a high fever, tiredness, fatigue, dry cough and sore throat point to the flu (influenza). If the body aches and pains are combined with nausea, vomiting and fever, a gastrointestinal infection ("stomach flu") could be behind it.
The following questions are of interest to the doctor when taking anamnesis:
What other symptoms do you have besides body aches?
How long have the complaints existed?
How would you characterize the pain, for example pulling or stabbing?
How intense are the body aches and other symptoms, such as a headache or stomach ache?
Do you suffer from previous illnesses such as diabetes mellitus, circulatory disorders, rheumatoid arthritis or osteoarthritis?
Have you recently had a urinary tract infection (indicating kidney inflammation) or the flu / cold (indicating pneumonia)?
Have you recently been abroad, for example in tropical regions (malaria)?
What medications are you taking? (It is best to bring a list with the name of the medication and the dosage)
Depending on the doctor's suspicions, further examinations will follow to confirm the diagnosis. If an infectious disease is suspected, the pathogen can be detected in the laboratory. Imaging methods allow conclusions to be drawn as to whether the joints are affected, for example in the case of rheumatism or osteoarthritis, and this is the cause of the joint pain.
Examples of further examinations:
- Blood test
- Urinalysis
- Computed Tomography
- X-ray examination
- Joint puncture to examine the synovial fluid
Treating body pain depends on the cause
The treatment of limb pain is basically based on the cause. In the case of flu and colds, there is no therapy that addresses the cause – namely the virus – but the symptoms can be treated well. Painkillers that also reduce fever, such as paracetamol, are effective. An old home remedy for a fever is cool calf compresses. Doctors use antibiotics to fight the bacteria in pneumonia – but these drugs do not work against viruses.
Infectious diseases usually heal after a few days without complications. This also makes the pain in the limbs go away.
Relieve body ache – these home remedies can help
In addition to medication, there are home remedies to relieve symptoms and improve wellbeing. Some tips for body aches:
Drink enough to make up for fluid loss in the event of a fever. Doctors recommend at least 1.5 to two liters of fluids a day. Low-calorie drinks such as unsweetened herbal tea or water are suitable.
Anyone who has aching limbs should take care of themselves physically. When infected, the body has enough to do with fighting the pathogens. Therefore, those affected should rest, avoid stress and not exert themselves physically.
A warm full bath is good for body aches and pains. Menthol, thyme or eucalyptus oil can be added to the bath water. The plant extracts have a relaxing effect, loosen the muscles and counteract aching limbs. It is essential to rest after the bath. If you have a fever, however, a hot bath can be too stressful for your circulation.
The best home remedies for a cold
Treating pain in the joints with joint diseases
If the pain in the limbs is due to joint diseases such as osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis, specific treatment is needed.
For osteoarthritis and rheumatism, doctors usually combine several treatment approaches, for example:
Painkillerthat also have an anti-inflammatory effect, for example from the group of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs); known active ingredients are ibuprofen, naproxen or diclofenac.
cortisone (Steroids): Cortisone has a strong anti-inflammatory effect, but is usually only used for a short time.
Rheumatism drugs: Basic therapeutic agents such as methotrexate sulfasalazine or leflunomide are used; Biologicals – genetically engineered defense substances (antibodies) – are also effective.
Move: Endurance sports that are easy on the joints such as swimming, hiking or cycling are good. Rest and rest is no longer recommended today.
Occupational therapy: Training in everyday activities to keep the joints flexible
physical therapy (Physiotherapy): targeted active and passive movement therapies relieve pain in the limbs
Physical therapies, for example baths (balneotherapy), warmth, cold, light stimulation current, massages
Orthopedic aids, for example insoles or special shoes
Pain in the limbs usually goes away on its own when an infectious disease is the trigger and it has subsided. Even with joint diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis or osteoarthritis, pain in the limbs can usually be managed well with early and sufficient treatment.