Osteoarthritis

Health encyclopaedia - Alphabetical Topic List

| A |

| B |

| C |

| D |

| E |

| F |

| G |

| H |

| I |

| J |

| K |

| L |

| M |

| N |

| O |

| P |

| Q |

| R |

| S |

| T |

| U |

| V |

| W |

| X |

| Y |

Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disorder and is the most common form of arthritis. In Britain, more than two million adults have osteoarthritis of the knee that is bad enough to cause pain and disability.

Osteoarthritis is closely age-related. Although the condition is quite rare in people under the age of 45, about 80 per cent of people aged 65 have evidence of the condition, but only a quarter of these have symptoms. Among older people, women tend to be more severely affected than men. Osteoarthritis most commonly involves the spine, the knee joints and the hip joints.

Cervical osteoarthritis is a wearing away of the cartilage surfaces of the spinal bones (vertebrae) of the neck. The disorder is most common in middle age and is slow and persistent, with pain, stiffness of the neck and sometimes tenderness or pressure over the affected area. Cervical osteoarthritis commonly appears long after a bone or joint injury, such as from whiplash head movement suffered by the occupants of a car struck from behind.

Chondromalacia patellae is a mild form of osteoarthritis, common in children and young adolescents. It affects the cartilage on the back of the kneecap (patella) and causes pain and stiffness, especially when going up and down stairs. Unless the inner load-bearing surface of the kneecap has been severely damaged, the outlook is generally good. In rare severe cases however, the kneecap may have to be removed.