Osteoarthritis, or degenerative “wear and tear” arthritis, is common with ageing and can affect any joint. The joints affected most often are the weightbearing joints such as the hip, knee, and ankle but osteoarthritis also commonly affects joints worn with use such as the shoulder, elbow, wrist and lower back.
Essentially, osteoarthritis is wearing of the chondral / joint surface cartilage which can lead to cartilage fissuring and fibrillation (e.g. splitting, or cracking) and ultimately to partial or complete loss of the joint surface cartilage. As cartilage wear occurs, there is shedding of the cartilage fragments into the joint and this may lead to synovitis/ inflammation of the lining of the joint with symptoms including joint pain and swelling, joint stiffness, and often decreased function.
Traditional treatments for osteoarthritis include pain medications, anti-inflammatory medications, stretching and exercise, and corticosteroid injections. There are now many more treatment options for osteoarthritis and this may allow any decision on surgical joint replacement to be deferred. Note that joint replacement surgery is often decided upon if, despite appropriate non-surgical treatment measures, the person has ongoing joint pain or loss of function that is unacceptable to them.
For more information, including treatment options, see the relevant section in the FixitDoc app (e.g. “Knee Osteoarthritis”, “Hip Osteoarthritis”, “Ankle Osteoarthritis”, “Shoulder Osteoarthritis”, “Elbow Osteoarthritis”, or "Wrist Osteoarthritis).
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