Osteoarthritis is one of the most common form of arthritis that can affect people of all ages. In this form of arthritis the cartilage of your bone wears down gradually resulting greater friction and bone depreciation that leads to joint pain. If you want to solve the problem you need an early diagnosis. After that you must follow a treatment that your physician will prescribe for you. This way you can reduce the pain and suffering caused by Osteoarthritis and lead a happy life.
What is Osteoarthritis?
Osteoarthritis is a disease that is known as degenerative joint disease and osteoarthrosis. The wearing down of the cartilage of the joints in your body causes this problem. This disease can affect any joint of your body. However, in most cases main joints like hands, hips, knees and spine can get affected due to the disease. The disease has one unique characteristic. It generally take place in one joint. But in case of finger osteoarthritis several small joints can get affected.
Causes of Osteoarthritis
When the cartilage that acts as a cushion to your joints starts wearing down, the chances of Osteoarthritis increase. Due to the deterioration of the smooth cartilage surface the joint are exposed to a rough hard surface. This causes irritation and uneasiness. When the cartilage depreciates completely the two bones in a joint rub with each other causing damage of bones and pains. Wearing down of the cartilage can be caused by being overweight,aging, joint injury and muscle weakness.
Symptoms of Osteoarthritis
If you feel pain in a joint at the time of action or after a long time of inactivity you might have Osteoarthritis. During the application of light pressure you might also feel tenderness in the area as well as stiffness. Your affected body joint might also loose flexibility. You can also have a grating sensation when you use your affected joint. Bone spur and swelling are the other symptoms of Osteoarthritis.
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Treatments of Osteoarthritis
The treatments of Osteoarthritis include physical workout, medication and surgery. In case that you are in the initial stage of Osteoarthritis you can go for resting the joint, exercising, weight loss, physical therapy and use of heat and cold to manage pain. You can also use several medication to relieve the pain. In the extreme cases you might need high doses of medication. You might also have to go for a surgery. The most common form of surgery is join replacement. You can also surgically clean up the area around your joint. Realigning bones and fusing bones are also the two surgical treatments of Osteoarthritis.
Though Osteoarthritis can not be cured completely with early diagnosis and treatment the problem can be controlled up to a great extent.
To know more about other types of arthritis keep reading arthritisxl.com.
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