What is osteoarthritis?

Joint wear (osteoarthritis) causes a change in the quality of cartilage. Cartilage allows bones and joints to move smoothly and absorb shocks properly. It also changes the composition of the fluid (synovia) in a joint. Osteoarthritis is most common in the hands, knees, hips, shoulders and neck. Through physiotherapy, the symptoms can be reduced so that there is no longer any hindrance in daily life and pain is reduced. 

 

Causes of osteoarthritis

There are several factors that play an important role in the development of osteoarthritis. What plays a major role in the development of osteoarthritis is your age. When you are 50 years or older, the risk of osteoarthritis increases. In addition, you may also have a hereditary predisposition to osteoarthritis: if someone in your family has osteoarthritis, there is a chance that you yourself may also develop osteoarthritis. If there is a genetic predisposition, it is possible that you will develop osteoarthritis in the joints at a young age....

 

Also affecting the development of osteoarthritis:

• Overweight; (morbid) obesity
• Joint inflammation; rheumatism, arthritis or gout
• Joint disorders; hip dysplasia, leg necrosis, metabolic disorders or hormonal disorders.
• Leg length difference
• Overly flexible ligaments and muscles (hypermobility)
• Gender: research has shown that women suffer more often and faster from osteoarthritis;
• Injuries: if you have had a (serious) injury in the past, this may increase the risk of osteoarthritis;
• Occupation: if you do heavy physical work every day, this will put more strain on the joints;
• Intense sports that put heavy strain on your joints, think ball, combat or strength sports.
• Operations in history; especially of orthopaedic nature.

As the bones in a joint rub against each other in the absence of cartilage protection, deformations and pointed accretions (ossification or osteogenesis) occur. This makes movement difficult and often very painful. Keeping moving then does not sound very pleasant, but with professional guidance and low intensity, the pain can actually decrease. With too little movement, the symptoms and complaints can increase sharply. Moving more after a period of rest can be difficult and cause pain. Morning stiffness is therefore an important symptom of osteoarthritis and is common among osteoarthritis patients. In addition, you may experience crepitations. This means that you hear creaking noises when moving, for example in the knees when standing up. These creaking noises in the joint often express themselves along with pain. Finally, you may experience bone growth (exostosis) or changing posture. This occurs mainly in advanced stages of osteoarthritis and not in the early stages. The position and shape of your bones may change because you start compensating to avoid the pain symptoms. This can also change your posture, which results in your joints, muscles and tendons being stressed differently and you developing more pain symptoms.