Osteoarthritis: Symptoms, Causes & Treatment

Osteoarthritis is a joint disorder affecting millions of people globally. As a result of this condition, one can experience joint inflammation and loss of joint cartilage. However, the symptoms are easy to manage by adopting some positive measures. Keep reading the article to know what those are, symptoms, causes, and treatment options.

Osteoarthritis is a common type of disease that usually develops as people age. The changes leading to osteoarthritis occur over many years, including a gradual loss of cartilage and overall breakdown. As a result of this degenerative joint disease, people experience specific signs and symptoms of osteoarthritis like inflammation, pain, swelling and other effects.

This disease can also lead your joint to lose its elasticity and turn stiff, thus becoming more prone to damage. In fact, after some time, even the cartilage wears away. Therefore, joints reduce their ability to absorb shock.

There are two types of osteoarthritis -

• Primary: This is the general type of osteoarthritis that affects the spine, fingers, thumbs, hips, knees and toes.
• Secondary: Secondary condition develops with a pre-existing joint abnormality. To name some, it includes trauma or injury related to sports or inflammatory arthritis like psoriatic, rheumatoid and gout.

This degenerative joint disorder begins mainly in joints of hips, knees and hands. However, they can develop in your neck and lower back too. Some of the common symptoms of osteoarthritis are -

• Joint stiffness
• Pain in the joint
• Limited range of motion or loss of flexibility
• Inflammation
• Discomfort feeling when someone presses the affected areas
• Bone spurs, or bone lump (these are usually painless)
• Grating, crepitus clicking or popping sound when joints move

Remember, the symptoms may not show at earlier stages as these usually get severe with time. However, progression may also lead to total damage of the cartilage or bony growth from the joint edges.

There can be several reasons for people developing osteoarthritis. However, the most common causes of osteoarthritis  are -

• Obesity: Obesity is one of the main reasons people develop this type of arthritis. So, people need to maintain a healthy weight.
• Hereditary: There are cases where people carry an inherited gene defect that makes cartilage. Because of this defect, their joints deteriorate at a faster rate. As a result, they experience the condition.
• Injury: Injury that may be sport-related or a sudden fall can lead to osteoarthritis. However, the type may depend on the area where they have an injury. For example, if a person has a severe lower back injury, they will likely develop spine osteoarthritis.
• Disease: Rheumatoid arthritis is the second most common type of arthritis, and people who have it may also develop osteoarthritis. Apart from this, conditions like excess hormonal growth, iron overload, etc., may also increase OA possibility. 
• Repeated stress on the joint: Over stressing joints also sometimes leads to OA. This includes situations when people at work require repetitive bending of their knees.

One can classify stages of osteoarthritis into four categories ranging from Stage 0 to Stage 3. Let's know them in brief -

• Stage 1: This is a minor stage where the joints have only gone through slight wear and tear, and there is no or little pain in the affected region.
• Stage 2: This is a mild condition when bone spurs become more visible, and the affected area feels stiff. In this case, patients may need a brace.
• Stage 3: The cartilage around joints begins to erode at this point. As a result, patients may experience inflammation and discomfort to perform normal day-to-day activities.
• Stage 4: Now, the condition has become severe when patients are usually in a lot of pain. In stage 3, cartilage gets wholly damaged, leading to inflammatory joints. In addition to this, the patient may also experience unbearable pain due to the overgrowth of bone spurs.

Certain risk factors of osteoarthritis that increase a person's chance to develop a particular health condition are -

• Women are at more risk to develop the disease than men.
• It is more common after women undergo menopause.
• People with a job that involves heavy lifting, climbing or similar action are more vulnerable to this condition.
• Having other health conditions like diabetes also adds to osteoarthritis risks.

Usually, diagnosing osteoarthritis involves several sets of actions. Depending on what doctors notice through your medical history or symptoms, they recommend lab tests, imaging and other physical examinations. 

When reviewing your medical history and running a physical test, the doctor looks for signs of osteoarthritis. For example, whether the patient's pain level is getting worse when performing an activity and gets better when taking rest or not. They also record if the patient's age is 45 or above. In addition, they focus on morning stiffness that lasts for 30 minutes or so, limited range of motion, and enlarged bony joints. 

There are other processes as well that come under how osteoarthritis is diagnosed. These include -

• Joint Fluid Analysis: In this process, the doctor uses a sterile needle to extract fluid from their patient's inflamed joint. After which, they run an analysis to look for any infection or gout symptoms.
• X-rays and MRI: These help reveal bone spurs near joints indicating cartilage damage.
• Blood Tests: Blood tests show any possibility of having rheumatoid arthritis.

Treatment for OA involves managing their multiple symptoms to provide relief to patients. This means that the best treatment for osteoarthritis will vary depending on the severity of symptoms and their location.

Doctors often treat stiffness, pain and swelling due to OA just by recommending some medications, home remedies or lifestyle changes. To understand the options, in brief, refer to the following sections -

Medications

Certain medications provide relief to OA patients. These are:

• Oral pain relievers like Acetaminophen
• Topical pain relievers
• Corticosteroids
• Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
• Cymbalta

Adequate Sleep

Getting enough sleep can do more good than medications sometimes. For example, it lowers inflammation and swelling in the portion when you rest your muscles properly.

Management of Weight

Being overweight puts direct pressure on your joints, and if it continues, people start to experience unbearable pain. In this case, it will help if you shed some pounds. In fact, there are many benefits of maintaining an ideal weight, like preventing the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

Heat and Cold Therapy

Another treatment that doctors can recommend is heat and cold therapy. In this, you apply hot and cold compress alternately for 15 to 20 minutes several times a day.

Exercise

Last but the most crucial treatment option for osteoarthritis is including a 20-30 minute physical exercise routine in your life. However, make sure to choose only simple and gentle exercises like swimming and walking. In this case, yoga and Tai Chi can also do the trick.

There is no cure for the disease, but the outlook for osteoarthritis treatment is favourable. If patients look after every suggestion made by their doctor regarding lifestyle changes and taking pain relief medications, they can easily manage OA.