What is Osteoarthritis?



Osteoarthritis is destruction of the smooth cartilage covering the ends of the bones. This destruction is similar to the wear and tear of moving machines. It usually starts in the middle age without any specific cause. You may have seen elderly persons walking like a duck, or using a stick to walk. Most of these people suffer from Osteoarthritis.
Stages

In early stages there is pain or catch in the knee while :

• getting up from siting position or

• changing position of the knee after a period of rest in oneposition.
In later stages, pain is almost constant and becomes worse on exertion. At this stage the pain is

relieved by:

• rest;

• pain killer medicines; or

• oil massage.

In advanced stage, walking is difficult and often needs a lot of effort. Going up and down the stairs is especially very difficult. The knee may appear 'swollen' and thigh may appear thin. The shape of the legs changes and the knee bows outwards. At this stage, the gait changes and there may be sideways lurch at every step.



Causes



Common causes of osteoarthritis are:


• Wear-and-tear due to prolonged use of the joint (This isthe commonest cause of osteoarthritis);

• Defect in quality of the cartilage such as in a disease calledpseudogout;

• Defect in alignment of the articulating surfaces;

• Loose structures inside the joint such as a loose cover ofthe meniscus;

• Old injury; and

• Previous infection.