Arthritis is a general term meaning joint inflammation. Osteoarthritis, which is also called degenerative joint disease, is the most common type of arthritis.

This problem is associated with the breakdown of joint cartilage and occurs in almost every joint of the body, but the most common points are those that bear the most joint weight, such as the hip, knee, and spine.

Osteoarthritis can also affect the fingers, thumb, neck, and big toe. to give Usually, this problem is not common in other joints unless there is a previous injury or excessive pressure.

What factors cause the destruction of the joint?

One of the main causes of degenerative joint disease is frequent use of the joint and heavy weight bearing, which causes fracture or damage to the joint cartilage between the bones.

Cartilage is a flexible and hard material that keeps the ends of the spine inside the joint and prevents them from rubbing directly against each other.

If the cartilage breaks or wears out, first there is friction in the movement of the joint and deterioration of the connective tissue between the muscles, joints and bones.

Finally, the bones move directly against each other, which causes friction, inflammation and pain. severe along with other symptoms associated with arthritis.

While any joint is susceptible to this disease, the areas of the hips, hands, knees and back of the feet or spine are the most common areas where arthritis occurs.

Unfortunately, worn or damaged cartilage does not have the ability to repair itself unlike other parts of the body because it does not contain blood vessels.

In rare cases, people with genetic defects in They have problems making collagen, which is one of the important components of cartilage. Also, this causes the rapid deterioration of cartilage and the onset of joint destruction or arthritis will be accelerated.

What happens in joint destruction disease?

Usually, a smooth and soft layer of cartilage acts as a pad between the bones of the joint. This helps the joint to move more easily.

In some people, with the use of joints, the cartilage is narrowed and the bones rub against each other.

The bones may begin to thicken at the ends of the junction to form the joint. In this case, the pieces of cartilage will loosen and prevent movement. This will lead to pain, joint swelling and stiffness.

Read more: Cause Dry joints or stiffness

What are the symptoms of degenerative joint disease?

The most common symptoms are pain, stiffness, swelling and tenderness in the joints. Osteoarthritis is a progressive disease that progresses from stage 0 to stage 4, with stage 4 being the most severe.

In the early stages, rest helps improve the symptoms of the disease. As the disease progresses, the symptoms appear faster and more severe, and medical attention is needed.

Although not all early stages progress to more severe stages, there are symptoms that indicate a visit to a specialist as soon as possible. Among them:

• Formation of bony spurs around the affected joint
• Feeling of rubbing the joint while using it
• Severe joint pain
• Loss of flexibility
• Limited range of motion
• Severe inflammation
• Deformation of the joint

Diagnosis of arthritis

The doctor first asks the patient questions about pain, such as whether joint pain gets worse with activity and better with rest? Then imaging of the joint is prescribed to identify the cause of the pain.

Blood test can also help rule out other forms of arthritis because osteoarthritis is primarily a clinical diagnosis.

The doctor can confidently make the diagnosis based on history and physical examination. Imaging is very important in confirming or rejecting the diagnosis.

Advanced imaging such as CT scan or MRI are rarely needed unless there is doubt in the diagnosis or the doctor doubts another diagnosis such as damage to the meniscus. class="wp-block-image">