Chronicinflammationsymptoms include classic signs like fatigue, fever, and joint pain. Inflammation is also known for causing symptoms that are considered atypical, including:
Chronic systemic inflammation occurs when the immune system is constantly at work. This can trigger an overreaction that causes the body to attack itself. Inflammation can be a sign of some very serious health conditions and should not be ignored.
This article explores 11 chronic inflammation symptoms. It explains various causes of chronic inflammation and how it can be treated and prevented.
What Is the Difference Between Acute and Chronic Inflammation?
Inflammation comes in two types—acute and chronic.
Acute inflammationoccurs in response to an injury or illness. It is part of the immune system response that helps with the healing process. Acute inflammation is generally short-lived and resolves quickly.
Chronic inflammationis more concerning. The effects linger, leaving the body in a constant state of panic. Over time, chronic inflammation will start to have a negative impact on tissues and organs. It can stick around for months or even years and play a role in the development of many diseases, fromautoimmune diseasesto cancer.
What Causes Chronic Inflammation?
Lifestyle factors can also lead to chronic inflammation. These include:
Low Back Pain
Chronic lower back pain can be a sign of inflammation. Conditions likeankylosing spondylitis(AS) andnon-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis(nr-AxSpA) are known for causing chronic inflammation that attacks the spine. Both can cause pain in the hips and neck. They will also cause pain and stiffness in the lower back, especially in the morning.
Talk to your healthcare provider if you experience persistent low back and hip pain. Early treatment can manage the condition, control pain and stiffness, and reduce the risk of disability.
Skin Symptoms
Skin symptoms, especially rashes, are common in a variety of autoimmune diseases known for causing systemic (all-over) inflammation.
Inflammatory skin conditions likepsoriasisandpsoriatic arthritisdevelop when the immune system triggers inflammation that attacks skin cells. But even conditions likerheumatoid arthritis(RA), which don’t usually cause skin symptoms, can trigger inflammation that attacks the skin.
About 1 in 100 people with RA will have some kind of skin involvement as part of their disease.Skin involvement in RA indicates a severe form of the disease.This may advance into complications of the disease likerheumatoid nodules, Felty syndrome,livedo reticularis, andrheumatoid vasculitis.
Talk to your healthcare provider about any new skin symptoms you experience. They can determine the source and provide you with treatment options.
Swollen Lymph Nodes
The medical term for swollen lymph nodes islymphadenitis. There are about 600 lymph nodes in your body, but the only ones you can feel are located in the neck, under the armpits, and in the groin area.Lymph nodes will swell up as a warning sign something is going on with your immune system.
A sore throat or cold can cause lymph nodes to swell up in the neck. Once your body has fought off the viral infection, you will start to feel better, and the swelling will be gone.
Tell your healthcare provider if your lymph nodes are consistently swollen or painful. It is possible something more serious is going on.
Excess Mucus Production
A number of inflammatory diseases can trigger mucus production, including:
If excess mucus production is a regular and uncomfortable occurrence for you, talk to your healthcare provider about getting a diagnosis and treatment plan.
An Overview of Excess Mucus Production
Low Energy
If you are consistently feeling fatigued despite getting plenty of sleep at night, this might be a clue your body is fighting off inflammation.
You will have little energy because your immune system is consistently working to regulate itself. The result is chronic inflammation from an imbalance in the amount of energy you have and what your body is trying to use.
Talk to your healthcare provider if fatigue and low energy are giving you any amount of concern. You should make an appointment with your healthcare provider for fatigue that has lasted two or more weeks despite getting better sleep, reducing stress, eating healthy, and staying hydrated.
What Is Fatigue?
Poor Digestion
Common digestion issues associated with chronic inflammation include:
Research shows that even low levels of inflammation can affect your gastrointestinal (GI) tract.
A number of inflammatory diseases can cause digestive symptoms. These include:
Ongoing digestive issues can affect your quality of life. If you are consistently experiencing digestive troubles, make an appointment with your healthcare provider. It might help to write down all your symptoms and what triggers them.
The more information you can share with your healthcare provider, the easier it will be to narrow down a diagnosis.
5 Ways to Reduce Inflammation and Improve Gut Health
Balance Problems
Inflammatory diseases can cause the body to overact act and attack nerve cells. When that happens, nerve signals are compromised, and a person might feel dizzy, off-balance, or have problems walking.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is one such inflammatory disease that affects balance. This is because MS causes inflammation in parts of the brain responsible for processing balance.
Further, any inflammatory condition—like an autoimmune disease—that causes vision, inner ear, and sensory problems can also alter balance.
Contact your healthcare provider if you notice changes to your balance or gait (the way you walk).
Insulin Resistance
Research shows inflammation affects the way thatinsulinworks.Insulin controls sugar levels in the blood, and insulin resistance can lead to high blood sugar. Persistent high levels of blood sugar can damage nerves and blood cells and lead todiabetes.
Symptoms of high blood sugarinclude:
Talk to your healthcare provider if you are consistently experiencing one or more of these symptoms, as persistent high blood sugar can cause serious complications.
Blood Clotting Problems
People who develop inflammation from an injury, trauma, or inflammatory disease can develophypercoagulation—a condition that causes the blood to clot too much. Hypercoagulation might lead to astroke,heart attack, orpulmonary embolism.
A blood clot of the heart or lung may cause:
A blood clot in the brain causes:
A blood clot in the deep veins will cause the following symptoms in one or both lower legs:
Go to an emergency room or call 911 if you experience signs of a blood clot. The cause of a blood clot needs to be found and treated right away.
Dry Eyes
Dry eyes are common with many inflammatory conditions, includingSjögren’s disease, an autoimmune disease that affects the tear glands and the salivary glands.
Eye inflammation is also common in other autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis andscleroderma.
Contact your healthcare provider if you experience very dry eyes, blurry vision, burning or stinging of the eyes, a gritty feeling in one or both eyes, sensitivity to light, discomfort wearing contacts, or inflamed eyelids.
Your healthcare provider can prescribe treatments to ease symptoms and reduce your risk of vision loss and other serious eye complications.
Eye Irritation: Common Causes and Soothing Remedies
Brain Fog
Brain fog is a symptom of many inflammatory conditions. It affects memory problems, mental clarity, concentration, and focus.
Research shows inflammation might be responsible for the mental sluggishness associated with chronic inflammatory diseases.
If inflammation is left unchecked, it can be just as debilitating as the disease that has caused the inflammation.
How to Treat Chronic Inflammation Symptoms
Chronic inflammation symptoms is treated in a number of ways, depending on the symptoms.
Diet
Inflammatory conditions related to carrying excess weight can often be managed with weight loss. Dietary recommendations include following a low-glycemic diet and reducing fat intake.
Exercise
Getting regular exercise is also shown to reduce chronic inflammation apart from weight loss. Research shows exercise lowers multiple pro-inflammatory molecules and cytokines at play in chronic inflammation.
Medication
Medications used to treat chronic inflammation vary based on the symptoms or underlying causes of inflammation. Examples include:
Herbal Remedies
Several herbs have anti-inflammatory properties that may help relieve chronic inflammation. These include:
Consult your healthcare provider prior to using herbs to treat inflammation.
How to Prevent Chronic Inflammation Symptoms
Chronic inflammation can be prevented with the following healthy strategies:
Summary
Chronic inflammation increases the risk of serious health conditions. If you experience signs of inflammation—whether common or atypical—talk to your healthcare provider about getting bloodwork to determine the source of the inflammation.
Medications, dietary supplements, and lifestyle changes can manage chronic inflammation. You should also do what you can manage to stressors and avoid smoking and excess alcohol consumption to reduce your risk.
12 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Hannoodee S, Nasuruddin DN.Acute inflammatory response. In:StatPearls[Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023.Pahwa R, Goyal A, Jialal I.Chronic inflammation. In:StatPearls[Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023.Venables PJW.Patient education: Rheumatoid arthritis symptoms and diagnosis (Beyond the basics).Lora V, Cerroni L, Cota C.Skin manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis. G Ital Dermatol Venereol. 2018;153(2):243-255. doi:10.23736/S0392-0488.18.05872-8Johns Hopkins Medicine.What is lymphadenitis?Fahy JV, Dickey BF.Airway mucus function and dysfunction.N Engl J Med. 2010;363(23):2233-2247. doi:10.1056/NEJMra0910061Lacourt TE, Vichaya EG, Chiu GS, et al.The high costs of low-grade inflammation: persistent fatigue as a consequence of reduced cellular-energy availability and non-adaptive energy expenditure.Front Behav Neurosci. 2018;12:78. doi:10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00078Peuhkuri K, Vapaatalo H, Korpela R.Even low-grade inflammation impacts on small intestinal function.World J Gastroenterol. 2010;16(9):1057-1062. doi:10.3748/wjg.v16.i9.1057The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.Balance system disorders.Rehman K, Akash MS.Mechanisms of inflammatory responses and development of insulin resistance: how are they interlinked?J Biomed Sci. 2016;23(1):87. doi:10.1186/s12929-016-0303-yAmerican Heart Association.Symptoms and diagnosis of excessive blood clotting (Hypercoagulation).Balter LJ, Bosch JA, Aldred S, et al.Selective effects of acute low-grade inflammation on human visual attention.Neuroimage. 2019;202:116098. doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.116098
12 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Hannoodee S, Nasuruddin DN.Acute inflammatory response. In:StatPearls[Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023.Pahwa R, Goyal A, Jialal I.Chronic inflammation. In:StatPearls[Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023.Venables PJW.Patient education: Rheumatoid arthritis symptoms and diagnosis (Beyond the basics).Lora V, Cerroni L, Cota C.Skin manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis. G Ital Dermatol Venereol. 2018;153(2):243-255. doi:10.23736/S0392-0488.18.05872-8Johns Hopkins Medicine.What is lymphadenitis?Fahy JV, Dickey BF.Airway mucus function and dysfunction.N Engl J Med. 2010;363(23):2233-2247. doi:10.1056/NEJMra0910061Lacourt TE, Vichaya EG, Chiu GS, et al.The high costs of low-grade inflammation: persistent fatigue as a consequence of reduced cellular-energy availability and non-adaptive energy expenditure.Front Behav Neurosci. 2018;12:78. doi:10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00078Peuhkuri K, Vapaatalo H, Korpela R.Even low-grade inflammation impacts on small intestinal function.World J Gastroenterol. 2010;16(9):1057-1062. doi:10.3748/wjg.v16.i9.1057The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.Balance system disorders.Rehman K, Akash MS.Mechanisms of inflammatory responses and development of insulin resistance: how are they interlinked?J Biomed Sci. 2016;23(1):87. doi:10.1186/s12929-016-0303-yAmerican Heart Association.Symptoms and diagnosis of excessive blood clotting (Hypercoagulation).Balter LJ, Bosch JA, Aldred S, et al.Selective effects of acute low-grade inflammation on human visual attention.Neuroimage. 2019;202:116098. doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.116098
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Hannoodee S, Nasuruddin DN.Acute inflammatory response. In:StatPearls[Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023.Pahwa R, Goyal A, Jialal I.Chronic inflammation. In:StatPearls[Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023.Venables PJW.Patient education: Rheumatoid arthritis symptoms and diagnosis (Beyond the basics).Lora V, Cerroni L, Cota C.Skin manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis. G Ital Dermatol Venereol. 2018;153(2):243-255. doi:10.23736/S0392-0488.18.05872-8Johns Hopkins Medicine.What is lymphadenitis?Fahy JV, Dickey BF.Airway mucus function and dysfunction.N Engl J Med. 2010;363(23):2233-2247. doi:10.1056/NEJMra0910061Lacourt TE, Vichaya EG, Chiu GS, et al.The high costs of low-grade inflammation: persistent fatigue as a consequence of reduced cellular-energy availability and non-adaptive energy expenditure.Front Behav Neurosci. 2018;12:78. doi:10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00078Peuhkuri K, Vapaatalo H, Korpela R.Even low-grade inflammation impacts on small intestinal function.World J Gastroenterol. 2010;16(9):1057-1062. doi:10.3748/wjg.v16.i9.1057The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.Balance system disorders.Rehman K, Akash MS.Mechanisms of inflammatory responses and development of insulin resistance: how are they interlinked?J Biomed Sci. 2016;23(1):87. doi:10.1186/s12929-016-0303-yAmerican Heart Association.Symptoms and diagnosis of excessive blood clotting (Hypercoagulation).Balter LJ, Bosch JA, Aldred S, et al.Selective effects of acute low-grade inflammation on human visual attention.Neuroimage. 2019;202:116098. doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.116098
Hannoodee S, Nasuruddin DN.Acute inflammatory response. In:StatPearls[Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023.
Pahwa R, Goyal A, Jialal I.Chronic inflammation. In:StatPearls[Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023.
Venables PJW.Patient education: Rheumatoid arthritis symptoms and diagnosis (Beyond the basics).
Lora V, Cerroni L, Cota C.Skin manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis. G Ital Dermatol Venereol. 2018;153(2):243-255. doi:10.23736/S0392-0488.18.05872-8
Johns Hopkins Medicine.What is lymphadenitis?
Fahy JV, Dickey BF.Airway mucus function and dysfunction.N Engl J Med. 2010;363(23):2233-2247. doi:10.1056/NEJMra0910061
Lacourt TE, Vichaya EG, Chiu GS, et al.The high costs of low-grade inflammation: persistent fatigue as a consequence of reduced cellular-energy availability and non-adaptive energy expenditure.Front Behav Neurosci. 2018;12:78. doi:10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00078
Peuhkuri K, Vapaatalo H, Korpela R.Even low-grade inflammation impacts on small intestinal function.World J Gastroenterol. 2010;16(9):1057-1062. doi:10.3748/wjg.v16.i9.1057
The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.Balance system disorders.
Rehman K, Akash MS.Mechanisms of inflammatory responses and development of insulin resistance: how are they interlinked?J Biomed Sci. 2016;23(1):87. doi:10.1186/s12929-016-0303-y
American Heart Association.Symptoms and diagnosis of excessive blood clotting (Hypercoagulation).
Balter LJ, Bosch JA, Aldred S, et al.Selective effects of acute low-grade inflammation on human visual attention.Neuroimage. 2019;202:116098. doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.116098
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