Written by Georgios Kitas, Rheumatologist Director of Rheumatology Department HYGEIA Angeliki Kotsalidou, Rheumatologist Curator, Rheumatology Department HYGEIA
What is osteoarthritis?
Osteoarthritis is a slowly progressive, non-inflammatory disorder of the musculoskeletal system.
Is osteoarthritis common and who does it affect? Osteoarthritis is the most common rheumatic disease, found in the general population, but also in the Rheumatology Clinic, as well as one of the most common general diseases that afflict humans. In terms of age, it usually concerns people older than 45 years, with women being affected more often than men.
What causes osteoarthritis?
The wear and tear of the articular cartilage is the cause for the initiation of joint damage and the subsequent creation of bony protrusions (osteophytes) in the joints, which the world knows as “salts” and which of course have nothing to do with the consumption of salt in food . Osteoarthritis is divided into Primary/Idiopathic when no cause can be found and Secondary when it appears on the ground of an underlying disease or after some injury to the joint.
Which joints does it affect?
Osteoarthritis occurs:
• in large peripheral joints, such as knees, hips and shoulders. Wrists, elbows and ankles are commonly affected
Secondary osteoarthritis.
• in small peripheral joints of the hands, but also of the feet.
• in the spine, cervical spine, thoracic spine and lumbar spine.
• in the temporomandibular joints.
What symptoms will lead us to the specialist?
• joint pain, especially with movement, that improves with rest.
• a few minutes of morning stiffness, because morning stiffness >60 min refers to inflammatory arthritis and not to osteoarthritis.
• stiffness of a few minutes after immobility.
• restriction of movement or cramping when moving.
• bony deformation of the joint.
What are the main causative factors of osteoarthritis?
1. Heredity (usually occurs in people of the same family).
2. Age and gender (mainly affects men before the age of 45 and women after menopause, often after the age of 45).
3. Increased body weight (in overweight people the probability of its occurrence increases).
4. Pre-existing inflammatory arthritis (gouty, rheumatoid or psoriatic), where osteoarthritis occurs in the joints affected by the inflammation.
5. Smoking.
6. Joint injuries that usually occur from repetitive movements, such as in musicians, PC users, etc., or sports activities without good preparation/warm-up).
How is osteoarthritis diagnosed? The diagnosis is made by a specialist Rheumatologist or Orthopedist, after examining the patient in detail, taking a complete history and carrying out a radiological examination of the affected joint or joints. Blood tests do not help diagnose osteoarthritis, because there are no specific indicators that accompany it.
What is the treatment for osteoarthritis? The treatment of osteoarthritis is not specific. Osteoarthritis is treated either conservatively or surgically.
Conservative treatment concerns:
• to medicines (topical or oral), which are used to reduce pain. Simple analgesics and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs have been used for pain. Between these two, the first ones are preferred, while preparations with glucosamine and chondroitin have been used, which have not been sufficiently proven to be effective in inhibiting osteoarthritis progression.
• in intra-articular injections, either with corticosteroids or with various hyaluronic preparations whose usefulness has not been fully clarified.
• in physical therapy and hydrotherapy, which contribute significantly, mainly, to strengthening the muscles surrounding the joint and reducing pain.
Surgical treatment concerns advanced conditions. Total replacement of the joint is recommended when it has undergone great deformation or ankylosis, which causes intense night pain and affects the patient’s mobility and quality of life.
Is there any prevention for osteoarthritis?
Osteoarthritis can be prevented to some extent by modifying some of the aforementioned causative factors (reducing body weight, avoiding smoking) and by adopting some other lifestyles in our daily life (physical therapy, swimming, muscle strengthening, etc.).
Source :Skai
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