Lesson Three - Musculoskeletal
Osteoarthritis
What is it?
Osteo comes from the Greek word osteon which means bone. Anytime you see a condition with the root osteo, you can be sure it has something to do with bones.
Osteoarthritis is a breakdown of cartilage. Cartilage is the cushion at the end of each bone as part of a joint. If the cartilage breaks down, the bones start to rub together and damage each other, leading to pain. When someone talks about arthritis without specifying a type, this is usually the type they are referring to. No one knows what causes the initial cartilage breakdown in osteoarthritis.
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Although there may be multiple joints that have osteoarthritis, common symptoms of osteoarthritis are usually found within a single damaged joint.:
- Pain—can feel like a dull ache made worse by movement
- Stiffness—usually most noticeable after a period of not moving the joint
- Tenderness
- Loss of flexibility
- Grating sensation—a grating or grinding feeling with possible popping or cracking sounds
- Bone spurs—extra bone that feels like hard lumps
- Swelling—caused by the inflammation
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There are a number of risk factors that make a person more likely to develop osteoarthritis, including:
- older age
- sex (women are at an increased risk of developing osteoarthritis)
- obesity
- a history of joint injuries
- repeated stress on the joint
- genetics
- congenital joint deformities, such as malformed joints or defective cartilage
- some metabolic diseases such as diabetes and hemochromatosis
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