Osteoarthritis By the end of this PowerPoint you will be able to…. http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/osteoarthritis/Pages/Introduction.aspx By the end of this PowerPoint you will be able to…. Describe and explain what osteoarthritis is, understanding diagrams seen. Explain the biology behind this condition, using biological terms, like friction Discuss the possible causes of osteoarthritis, include biological and environmental factors. Explain and give context to the symptoms a person may experience with osteoarthritis

Carry out your own research into Osteoarthritis Research into osteoarthritis, using the NHS website – the more you understand, the more confident you’ll feel and be able to answer a range of questions…. 8.75 million people in the UK have sought treatment for osteoarthritis. » Women are more likely than men to have sought treatment for osteoarthritis. » Osteoarthritis increases between the ages of 45 and 75 years. » Of those aged 75 years and over, 49% of women and 42% of men have sought treatment for osteoarthritis Osteoarthritis is the most common joint disorder in the UK. Symptomatic knee OA occurs in 10% men and 13% in women aged 60 years or older. The number of people affected with symptomatic OA is likely to increase due to the aging of the population and the obesity epidemic

So what is osteoarthritis? Osteoarthritis is a condition that affects your joints. The surfaces within your joints become damaged so the joint doesn’t move as smoothly as it should. Some of the cartilage covering the ends of the bones gradually roughens and becomes thin, and the bone underneath thickens. All the tissues within the joint become more active than normal. as if your body is trying to repair the damage.

What happens in osteoarthritis? As if your body is trying to repair the damage. The bone at the edge of your joint grows outwards, forming bony spurs called osteophytes. The synovium (the inner layer of the joint capsule which produces synovial fluid) may thicken and make extra fluid. This causes your joint to swell. The capsule and ligaments (tough bands that hold the joint together) slowly thicken and contract as if they were trying to make your joint more stable.

Symptoms….. Pain – The pain tends to be worse when you move your joint or at the end of the day. If you have severe osteoarthritis, you may feel pain more often. Stiffness – Your joints may feel stiff after rest, but this usually wears off as you get moving. A grating or grinding sensation (crepitus) – Your joint may creak or crunch as you move. Swelling – The swelling may be hard (caused by osteophytes) or soft (caused by synovial thickening and extra fluid), and the muscles around your joint may look thin or wasted. Not being able to use your joint normally – Your joint may not move as freely or as far as normal. Sometimes it may give way because your muscles have weakened or your joint has become less stable. Exercises to strengthen your muscles can help to prevent this.

Possible causes and risk factors Many factors can increase your risk of osteoarthritis. It’s often a mixture of these that leads to the condition: Age – Osteoarthritis usually starts from the late 40s onwards. We don’t fully understand why it’s more common in older people, but it might be due to your muscles weakening and your body being less able to heal itself, or your joint slowly wearing out over time. Gender – For most joints, especially the knees and hands, osteoarthritis is more common and more severe in women.

Possible causes and risk factors Obesity – Being overweight is an important factor in causing osteoarthritis, especially in your knee. It also increases your chances of osteoarthritis slowly becoming worse. Joint injury – A major injury or operation on a joint may lead to osteoarthritis in that joint later in life. Normal activity and exercise don’t cause osteoarthritis, but doing very hard activities over and over or physically demanding jobs can increase your risk.

Genetic factors – Nodal osteoarthritis, which particularly affects the hands of middle-aged women, runs strongly in families, although it’s not yet clear which genes are involved. And some rare forms of osteoarthritis which start at an earlier age are linked with genes that affect collagen (an essential part of cartilage). Research shows genetic factors play a smaller, but still important, part in osteoarthritis of the hip and knee.

Diagnosis X-rays – X-rays are the most useful test to confirm osteoarthritis, although you probably won’t need one. They may show changes such as bony spurs or narrowing of the space between your bones. They’ll also show whether any calcium has settled in your joint. X-rays can’t really show how much pain or disability osteoarthritis is likely to cause. Some people have a lot of pain from fairly minor joint damage, while others have little pain from more severe damage

Medical treatment….. Steroid injections reduce inflammation but can only be given a limited amount of times

Joint replacement Knee replacement surgery is usually necessary when the knee joint is worn or damaged to the extent that your mobility is reduced and you experience pain even while resting