Osteoarthritis overview

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Osteoarthritis of the Medial Side of the Knee.
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Overview

Historical Perspective

Classification

Pathophysiology

Causes

Differentiating Osteoarthritis from other Diseases

Epidemiology and Demographics

Risk Factors

Screening

Natural History, Complications and Prognosis

Diagnosis

Diagnostic Criteria

History and Symptoms

Physical Examination

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Mohammadmain Rezazadehsaatlou, Irfan Dotani

Overview

Osteoarthritis / Osteoarthrosis (OA, also known as degenerative joint disease, degenerative arthritis, arthrosis or in more colloquial terms "wear and tear") is the most common form of arthritis, caused by wearing of the cartilage that covers and cushions joint spaces. As the cartilage wears away, the patient may experience pain described as "weight-bearing" whenever walking and standing. Due to the movement limitations caused by pain, regional muscles may experience atrophy. Ligaments may become laxer as well due to this. OA is derived from the Greek word "osteo", meaning "of the bone", "arthro", meaning "joint", and "itis", meaning inflammation, although inflammation is not a common finding in this regard. OA possesses a great degree of variability in disease onset, progression, and severity. OA is characterized by a variety of structural and functional impairments occurring in an involved joint. Destruction, degeneration, articular cartilage loss, and even the soft tissue involvement are the main pathological process of this disease. It can be diagnosed through radiographic evaluations. Moreover, clinical sign and symptoms are helpful in the final diagnosis of this disease. OA can be defined radiologically, clinically, or pathologically, with radiographic OA being considered as the reference standard.[5] The symptoms that are consistently associated with OA are joint pain, stiffness, swelling, and limitation of joint function. Few individuals who present these symptoms may not demonstrate radiographic OA. However, others confirmed to have OA using radiographic techniques may not present with clinical manifestations of the disease.[5] These unique characteristics have made it difficult to identify the underlying mechanisms contributing to the disease as well as the treatments for reducing the incidence and severity of the disease. In addition, the stimuli that may initiate the processes associated with OA are multifactorial and include occupational and non-occupational (e.g., genetics, obesity, age, etc.) factors. OA affects nearly 43 million patients in United States and almost 15% of the world population, accounting for 25% of visits to primary care physicians, and half of all NSAID (Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs) prescriptions. It is estimated that 80% of the population will have radiographic evidence of OA by age 65, although only 60% of those will be symptomatic.[1] There is no recent discovery of a cure for OA, as cartilage has not been induced to regenerate. However, if OA is caused by cartilage damage (for example as a result of an injury) Autologous Chondrocyte Implantation may be a possible treatment. Other treatments are with NSAIDs, local injections of glucocorticoid or hyaluronan, and in severe cases, with joint replacement surgery. Many physicians have also reported good pain relief by treating ligaments (which is responsible for a bone to bone connection) with Prolotherapy. Clinical trials employing tissue-engineering methods have demonstrated regeneration of cartilage in damaged knees, including those that have progressed to osteoarthritis.[2] Furthermore, in January 2007, Johns Hopkins University was offering to license a technology of this kind, listing several clinical competitors in its market analysis. Osteoarthritis is capable of influencing any joint in the human body; meanwhile, the most commonly affected joints are the knee and hip joints given that the degree of weight bearing required of these joints is immense. Other joints, such as the distal interphalangeal joints of the fingers and shoulder joints are also commonly affected as well. The economic burden of OA for United States economy is more than $60 billion per year; which has more economic pressure than rheumatoid arthritis. This cost can be considered into two subgroups: the medical related costs and the lost expediency of patients at work.

Historical Perspective

The earliest descriptions of OA were provided by Heberden and Haygarth in the 19th century. [3] [4] In the 1930s and 1940s, Dr. Stecher showed that there were two forms of OA: idiopathic and post-traumatic. [5] In the 1950s, the connection between Heberden’s nodes and large joint OA were revealed by Kellgren and Moore. In this regard, the first x-ray grading system for OA was developed by Jonas Kellgren and John Lawrence in the 1950s. Surgical management of OA was developed in the 1960s by Drs. Charnley and McKee.

Classification

Osteoarthritis is radiographically classified depending on the degree of joint involvement. The Kellgren-Lawrence is a common method to classify the severity of OA in the knee using five different grades. This classification was proposed by Kellgren et al. in 1957 and was then accepted by WHO in 1961. 

Pathophysiology

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a well-known degenerative joint disease influencing millions of people worldwide. Osteoarthritis is a complex disease caused by changes in the tissues' homeostasis of articular cartilages and subchondral bones. The cell/extracellular matrix (ECM) and their interactions play an important role in the pathophysiology of articular cartilage and the occurrence of Osteoarthritis. Consequently, the main feature of OA is that after this process is involved, the articular cartilages of the involved joint no longer will have a normal acting system because the destruction of the articular cartilages can no longer act as shock absorber. 

Causes

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a result of a variety of disorders that lead to structural and functional failure in involved joints. Osteoarthritis, traditionally, has been considered as a disease specifically related to articular cartilage. Presently, it's been proven that OA influencing the whole joint system consisted of capsule, and synovium, subchondral bone, cartilage, menisci, ligaments, and periarticular muscle.

Differentiating Osteoarthritis overview from Other Diseases

OA must be differentiated from other diseases that cause joint impairment and other related signs and symptoms such as Rheumatoid arthritis, Gout, Joint tuberculosis.

Epidemiology and Demographics

OA is one of the most frequent diagnoses and is the leading cause of disability among the adult population in the USA. According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), more than 26 million people in the USA were diagnosed with different forms of OA. The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) reported that the 46.4 million Americans and 21.6% of Americans adults were diagnosed with arthritis. OA can involve any joint, but knees, hips, hands, are most common sites for this involvement.

Risk Factors

Osteoarthritis is a multifactorial disease and the interactions between systemic and local factors play important role in development and prognosis of OA.

Screening

Routine screening for osteoarthritis is not indicated unless the patient is symptomatic.

Natural History, Complications, and Prognosis

Natural History

Complications

Prognosis

Diagnosis

Diagnostic Criteria

History and Symptoms

Physical Examination

Laboratory Findings

Imaging Findings

Other Diagnostic Studies

Treatment

Medical Therapy

Surgery

Prevention

References

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