What Is Degenerative Joint Disease?

Degenerative osteoarthritis, also known as osteoarthritis, degenerative arthritis, senile arthritis, hypertrophic arthritis, is a degenerative disease due to aging, obesity, strain, trauma, congenital joint abnormalities, joints Deformation and injury of articular cartilage, reactive hyperplasia of joint margin and subchondral bone caused by many factors such as deformity. This disease is more common in middle-aged and older people, and occurs in weight-bearing joints and joints with a greater amount of activity (such as cervical, lumbar, knee, hip, etc.). Excessive weight bearing or the use of these joints can promote the occurrence of degenerative changes. The clinical manifestations are slowly developing joint pain, tenderness, stiffness, joint swelling, restricted mobility, and joint deformities.

Basic Information

English name

degenerative osteoarthrosis

Visiting department

orthopedics

Common symptoms

Joint pain, often pain at rest, joint stiffness

Causes of degenerative osteoarthropathy

The etiology is unknown, and may be related to factors such as old age, females, obesity, and occupational overuse.

Clinical manifestations of degenerative osteoarthropathy

The main symptom is joint pain, often resting pain, which manifests as pain after rest, which is relieved after a short period of movement, but the pain is aggravated after too much movement. Another symptom is joint stiffness, which often occurs when you wake up in the morning or stay in a certain position during the day. Examination of the affected joints shows joint swelling and tenderness, friction or "click" sounds during movement, and severe disease may have muscle atrophy and joint deformities.

Degenerative Osteoarthropathy Examination

Imaging examination

X-rays show unequal width or narrowing of the joint space, osteoporosis at the joints, osteogenesis or joint enlargement, and even joint deformation, subchondral bone plate sclerosis, and osteophyte formation. CT can clearly show different degrees of osteoarticular hyperplasia, calcification and free body in the joints, and sometimes the meniscus.

2. Laboratory inspection

There were no abnormal changes in blood cell sedimentation rate and blood image, and the agglutination test was positive. Synovial fluid is usually clear, slightly yellowish and highly viscous, and the white blood cell count is usually within 1.0 × 10 ⁹ / L, mainly monocytes. Mucin clot is solid.

Diagnosis of degenerative osteoarthropathy

According to the relevant medical history, clinical manifestations and X-ray findings, the diagnosis of this disease is not difficult. Synovial fluid examination can be done if necessary.

Treatment of degenerative osteoarthropathy

The main treatment of this disease is to reduce the weight of the joints and excessive large-scale activities to delay the progress of the disease. Obese patients should lose weight and reduce joint load. When the joints of the lower limbs are damaged, crutches or canes can be used to reduce the burden on the joints. Physiotherapy and proper exercise can maintain the range of motion of the joints. If necessary, splint braces and canes can be used to help control the symptoms of the acute stage. Anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs can reduce or control symptoms, but should be used with caution after assessing patient risk factors and should not be taken for long periods. Chondroprotective agents such as glucosamine sulfate have the effect of relieving symptoms and improving function, while long-term administration can delay the structural progress of the disease. For advanced cases, under the condition that the whole body can tolerate surgery, artificial joint replacement is currently recognized as an effective method to eliminate pain, correct deformities and improve function, which can greatly improve the quality of life of patients. ^[1]