Many people confuse the osteoarthritis with arthirits. We try to understand together what the difference between these two diseases is.
What is osteoarthritis?
The osteoarthritis is a condition in which the cartilage will become increasingly smaller and there is more likelihood of degeneration. Being connected to wear and tear of the joints, it affects in old age, when cartilage arrive at most point of use.
The most stressed articular joints are the spine, knees, shoulders, feet and hands. Slowly the articular cartilage thins, leading to bone deformity that causes pain and veritable metamorphosis of the phalanges of the hands.
What is arthritis?
The arthritis is a general term that involves the conditions that affect the joints and surrounding tissues. The joints are placed in the body where the bones meet, such as the knees, wrists, fingers, feet and hips. Two common types of arthritis are the osteoarthritis and the rheumatoid arthritis.
The osteoarthritis is a painful joint disease, degenerative often involving the hips, knees, neck, lower back and the small joints of the hands. Usually it develops in joints that are injured by the repeated execution of a particular activity or a sport or from carrying around excess body weight. In the end, this injury or repeated shocks make thin the cartilage.
As a result, the bones rub together, joint flexibility is reduced, the bone spurs develop. Usually, the first symptom is pain that gets worse after exercise or long periods of immobility. The treatment includes analgesics, creams or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, appropriate exercises or physical therapy; the joint immobilization; replacement surgery for severely damaged larger joints such as the knee or hip.
The rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune inflammatory disease that affects various joints of the fingers, thumbs, wrists, elbows, shoulders, knees, feet and ankles. An autoimmune disease is one in which the body releases enzymes that attack its own healthy tissues.
In rheumatoid arthritis, these enzymes destroy the linings of the joints. This causes pain, swelling, stiffness, deformities, and reduced movement. People with rheumatoid arthritis may also have systemic symptoms, such as fatigue, fever, weight loss, eye inflammation, anemia, pleurisy or subcutaneous nodules.
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The symptoms
The 5 most common symptoms are:
- Swelling: Swelling and joint deformity.
- Pain: Chronic.
- Heat: Due to inflammation.
- Redness: Due to increased blood flow.
- Stiffness: Lockout.
Although the osteoporosis and the osteoarthritis are two medical conditions with little in common, the similarity of their names causes great confusion. These conditions develop differently, have different symptoms, are diagnosed in a different way and are treated in a different way.
With the arthritis or osteoarthritis, many people benefit from exercise programs that may include physical therapy and rehabilitation. In general, the exercises that emphasize stretching, strengthening, posture and range of motion are appropriate.
Examples include low-impact, swimming, aerobics, tai chi and yoga. However, people with osteoarthritis should take care to avoid activities that include bending forward, twisting the spine or lifting heavy weights.
People with arthritis must compensate for limited movement in the affected joints.