Osteoarthritis

• Definitions
· Osteoarthritis is the disease of painful joints and bony overgrowth of the affect joints.
· Osteoarthritis progresses slowly.

• Overview
· Osteoarthritis typically occurs in the joints of the neck, lower spine, hips, knees, hands and large toes.
· Osteoarthritis is common; 30% of people ages 45 to 65 years and 80% of people over 80 years have osteoarthritis.
· Genetics are important in the development of osteoarthritis and patients with osteoarthritis usually have relatives with osteoarthritis.

• Types
· Typical osteoarthritis occurs in joints with a history of trauma or excessive us.
• Osteoarthritis typically worsens slowly over time.

• Diffuse idiopathic Skeletal hyperostosis (DISH) is a type of osteoarthritis in which there is a bony overgrowth on the anterior of front aspect of the spine.

• Erosive osteoarthritis of the hands is a type of osteoarthritis in which there is an inflammatory destruction of the joints of the hands similar to rheumatoid arthritis.

• Hemochromotosis induced osteoarthritis is osteoarthritis in patients with Hemochromotosis typically involving the hands

• Symptoms
· The most common symptom of osteoarthritis is pain. Pain is usually worse with activities and improves with rest and non-weight bearing exercise.
· Patients with osteoarthritis typically have morning stiffness of the involved joints lasting less then 30 minutes.

• Treatment
· Lifestyle modification
· Exercising muscles that support the affected joints is helpful in controlling pain and slowing the progression of osteoarthritis.

· Drug Therapy
· Tylenol has been shown to be as effective as Ibuprofen in controlling the pain of osteoarthritis.
· Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as naprosyn and ibuprofen are commonly used to help control pain and inflammation of osteoarthritis.
· Glucosamine may be helpful in preventing the loss of cartilage associated with osteoarthritis.

· Surgical joint replacement is an option for patient with intractable pain or disease that interferes with normally daily activities.

References
Rheum. 1998;41:1951-9. [PMID: 9811049]
Rheum. 2003;48:370-7. [PMID:12571845]

Posted on March 22, 2009

Leave a Reply