Understanding Osteoarthritis

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Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease caused by various factors including genetics, overuse, and injury, with risk factors such as obesity, age, and joint trauma. Diagnosis and management involve patient education, lifestyle modifications, physiotherapy, and pharmacological interventions like analgesics or joint replacement for severe cases.

Insights

  • Osteoarthritis is primarily caused by wear and tear on joints due to various factors such as genetics, excessive use, and injuries, leading to symptoms like joint pain, stiffness, and reduced function.
  • Diagnosis and management of osteoarthritis involve a multifaceted approach, including patient education, lifestyle modifications, pain management through medications like paracetamol and NSAIDs, and considering more invasive treatments like steroid injections or joint replacement for severe cases.

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Recent questions

  • What causes osteoarthritis?

    Wear and tear, genetic factors, overuse, injury.

  • What are the key symptoms of osteoarthritis?

    Joint pain, stiffness, deformity, reduced function.

  • How is osteoarthritis diagnosed?

    Patient education, lifestyle changes, physiotherapy, medication.

  • What are the risk factors for osteoarthritis?

    Obesity, increased age, joint trauma, family history.

  • What are the key x-ray changes in osteoarthritis?

    Loss of joint space, osteophytes, sclerosis, subchondral cysts.

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Summary

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Understanding Osteoarthritis: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment

  • Osteoarthritis is characterized by wear and tear in the joints, affecting synovial joints due to genetic factors, overuse, and injury.
  • Risk factors for osteoarthritis include obesity, increased age, certain occupations, joint trauma, being female, and having a family history of the condition.
  • Key x-ray changes in osteoarthritis are loss of joint space, osteophytes, subarticular sclerosis, and subchondral cysts, which may not always correlate with symptoms.
  • Osteoarthritis presents with joint pain, stiffness worsened by activity, joint deformity, instability, and reduced function, commonly affecting knees, hips, hands, and spine.
  • Diagnosis involves patient education, lifestyle changes like weight loss, physiotherapy, orthotics, stepwise analgesia starting with paracetamol, NSAIDs, and considering steroid injections or joint replacement in severe cases.
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