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Osteoarthritis, also known as degenerative joint disease and degenerative arthritis, is the most common form of arthritis. It involves the breakdown of cartilage in the joints and is primarily found in older adults. Symptoms include aching, soreness, pain, bony enlargements in the center of a joint, and joint swelling. Osteoarthritis is most commonly experienced in weight bearing joints such as the knees and hips. It is typically the result of aging, but can be intensified by other factors such as heredity, injury, obesity, joint overuse, and stress. While there is no cure for Osteoarthritis, there are helpful treatments that and lessen the pain, increase mobility, and enhance the individual’s quality of life. The type of treatment an Osteoarthritis patient receives will vary depending on a myriad of factors. If you suspect you are experiencing Osteoarthritis, it is critical that you discuss your symptoms and treatment options with your personal physician to ensure you are ge
tting the right treatment for your particular needs.

Most common treatments include:

Physical therapy and exercise.

A licensed physical therapist can advise you on specific muscle strengthening exercises that will help support ligaments and tendons and help alleviate pain.

Supportive devices.

Supportive devices increase mobility, prevent falls, and are great for pain relief. A hinged knee brace, can be used to stabilize ligaments and tendons which will significantly decrease pain, while devices like crutches or canes can lessen the direct stress on joints. When selecting a device, make sure it is lightweight, comfortable, and easy to adjust for a precise fit.

Medication (oral or injected).

Your doctor may prescribe you pain-relieving and/or anti-inflammatory medications which can help with Osteoarthritis management.

Weight Control.

Keeping your weight in a healthy range will reduce the stress on your joints.

Hot or cold therapy.

Hot or cold compresses can be administered to reduce pain and swelling.

Removal of fluid.

If excess fluid surrounds the joints, your physician may choose to drain that fluid manually in order to alleviate pressure on the joint.

Alternative treatments.

Some medical research concludes that glucosamine and chondrotin can rebuild cartilage, especially in the knee. There are also other (currently unproven) supplements that are also associated with Osteoarthritis treatment. Likewise, some people swear that acupuncture and bio-electric therapy alleviates pain, though there have not yet been any conclusive studies to support these claims.

Surgery.

If less invasive treatments prove ineffective, your doctor may recommend corrective surgery.

Osteoarthritis is a common condition affecting the joints that can affect mobility and quality of life. It can limit daily function such as ability to squat down or carry heavy objects.

This article reviews the signs and symptoms used to diagnose osteoarthritis.

It is a very common; 8.5 million people in the UK have osteoarthritis (Arthritis Care, UK 2002).

Osteoarthritis may first appear between ages 30 and 40, and is present in almost everyone by age 70.

There are several symptoms associated with arthritis and can include:

• Morning stiffness of stiffness after periods of inactivity
• Achy joints
• Pain
• Restriction range of motion/ impaired mobility
• Crepitus or grinding sound on movement

Symptoms are most likely felt in large weight-bearing joints in one or more sites especially the hip, knee, spine and hand.

Osteoarthritis can develop as we age or from other factors, such as injury or being overweight.

It is important that if you experience these symptoms that you consult a suitably qualified health professional for an assessment and diagnosis.

Most people with arthritis or degenerative joint pain have already been to their doctor to get it diagnosed.
In my experience there are some times when you MUST see your physician about your joint pain.

Here is my advice, if you have any of the following:

• joint pain that is causing persistent pins and needles or numbness
• spinal pain with weakness in your arms or legs, pins and needles, or loss of control of bladder and bowel (you need to see your doctor immediately for this one)
• undiagnosed trauma or significant injury that has not been assessed
• joints that lock regularly or give way on you (especially knees)
• unexplained weight loss
• constant unremitting night pain
• unable to weight bear through the joint
• undiagnosed joint pain for more than 2 weeks

Then you MUST consult your physician. Not all joint pain is from arthritis, and an accurate diagnosis is very important.

Your health professional will ask a series of questions to learn more about the symptoms then do an objective assessment.

On examination there may be swelling around the joint, heat, deformity, and pain on manual joint compression.

This could be confirmed by X-ray imaging where your health professional could see any of the following:

• narrowing of the joint space
• bony spurs or osteophytes
• alignment changes of the joint

It is important to know that signs follow symptoms and that in early arthritis you may experience some symptoms of osteoarthritis before the signs. As the condition develops it is more pronounced on X-ray imaging. Your health professional will look at the total clinical picture for the diagnosis.

Once you have received a diagnosis it is important to establish a systemised management plan that you can easily integrate in to your life to proactively manage your osteoarthritis. The earlier and more comprehensive your plan is in the beginning the better for your overall outcome.

Nowadays, arthritis has become a very common disease. In this disease, the joints of the older people as well as the younger people are affected. The pain caused due to arthritis can be reduced with the help of glucosamine.

Cartilage is very important for the joints because it helps in absorbing the shock in the joints and also prevents the touching of the bones with each other. But, as the time passes, the amount of cartilage reduces in the body. Due to this, the friction generated by the rubbing of the bones cause pain and instability. There can also be swelling and pain in the joints. This problem can be solved with the help of glucosamine.

The Arthritis disease develops due to aging or due to any injury. There have been no medicines found for the treatment of this disease except the rebuilding of the cartilage in the joints. Glucosamine taken as the supplement can help to prevent this. Glucosamine is actually glucose and a sugar compound which can be used to regenerate the lost cartilage in your joints.

The glucosamine is found in more quantity in the joints and the connective tissues so that the regeneration of long and large molecules is continued which builds up the cartilage and maintain the joints in good condition. Glucosamine is generally taken along with the supplements or compounds that help in the prevention of arthritis. Its dose contains about 500mg three times a day. As proper dietary sources are not found in today’s times, it is necessary to take glucosamine to get relief from the joint pain.

Arthritis includes more than one hundred different disorders characterized by swelling, pain and limited or no movement in the joints. The most common form is osteoarthritis, caused by the breakdown and loss of the cartilage in one or more joints. Because it is essentially a degenerative disease, it happens more frequently and with greater severity as people age. It occurs more frequently in men over the age of 45 and in women after the age of fifty five, mostly due to wear and tear of the joints. Other factors exacerbate osteoarthritis, including weight and diet.

Psoriatic and rheumatoid arthritis are genetically transmitted and are primarily caused by severe inflammation within the joints that destroy the cartilage.

Today, physicians know much more about who is likely to develop osteoarthritis, the most common form of this disease. Below are some factors:

• Heredity.

Like many conditions, this disease seems to run in families. One indication of a genetic predisposition is the formation of Herberden’s nodes. The hard, bony growths on the joints near the fingertips are twice as common in women whose mothers had these joint changes.

• Obesity.

This is another risk factor. Generally, the more a person weighs, the greater the pressure on the knees, hips, and other weight-bearing joints. For example, women who were overweight at age eighteen are five times more likely to develop hip arthritis than women who maintained a normal weight. This has serious implications, since more than half of the women in the United States are overweight. Weight management is a significant factor in the development of arthritis because excess pounds clearly create a greater strain on the weight-bearing joints such as the knees and hips. Being overweight though, doesn’t guarantee that you will develop the disease, but it significantly increases your chances.

• Trauma.

Often a severe trauma such as a sports injury, motor accident or fall may cause damage to the cartilage. It may take more than a year for the disease to develop in the joint that was traumatized. Even a small tear in the cartilage can lead to inflammation at the site of the injury. This injury can be the instigating factor that leads to loss of resiliency in the cartilage, cartilage breakdown, and eventually, arthritis.

• Estrogen.

This hormone may also play a role in the development of osteoarthritis in women. The amount of estrogen in the body plummets after menopause. Several studies show that estrogen replacement may have a protective effect on the bones of older women. However, when this therapy is stopped the benefits that go with it decline too. In ten years, risk gradually returns to a level similar to that of women who have never used estrogen replacement therapy. Hence, women must consider the pros and cons of hormone replacement with her physician.

• Occupation.

Heavy physical labor may damage the joints and set the stage for osteoarthritis. For instance, miners, dockworkers, and furniture movers normally develop this disease in their knees. Employers may be willing to modify job descriptions or workplace environments to include some desk work or to reduce heavy lifting, climbing stairs, or squatting.