Common symptoms of arthritis
- Stiffness
- Pain
- Enlargement and/or deformity
- Swelling
- Decreased range of motion
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Autoimmune disorders
If you struggle with an autoimmune disease, your body can mistakenly attack the lining of your joints, causing rheumatoid, lupus, psoriatic, and other inflammatory arthritis conditions to occur.
Obesity
Putting on excess weight can stress your joints and be a contributing factor to the development of arthritis.
Injury and overuse
An injury such as a fracture or cartilage injury in the joint can accelerate the progression of arthritis. Long-term overuse such as heavy impact activities and weightlifting can also cause arthritis.
Genes or family history
Genetics play a role in the quality of your cartilage and how quickly it will wear out. Your family history of age at which arthritis develops can clue you in on what to expect.
Age
As you age, your chance of developing arthritis naturally increases. In fact, osteoarthritis is most common amongst adults over the age of 50.
Diagnosis of arthritis
If you’re dealing with arthritic symptoms and are looking for help, schedule a visit with one of our doctors to diagnose the issue. At the initial appointment, your doctor will perform a physical exam to inspect, palpate, and maneuver the joint for analysis.
An X-ray is usually the first and often only test performed to diagnose arthritis. This can be done conveniently during your visit with us, so you don’t have to make extra trips.
Steps to diagnosis
- Consultation
- Medical history
- Physical exam
- Imaging
What are my options?
Non-Surgical
- Rest and activity modification
- Ice and topicals
- Anti-inflammatory medication
- Braces
- Injections
Surgical
- Minimally invasive arthroscopic surgery
- Joint replacement, disc replacement
- Joint resurfacing
- Fusion
- Realignment surgery
Frequently Asked Questions
What is arthritis?
Every joint in our bodies is lined with cartilage as a gliding surface for smooth motion and to absorb impact. This cartilage naturally wears down as we age and due to other factors, just like the tread on a tire. When the cartilage becomes too thin, you may develop painful symptoms, and that is when we say “you have arthritis in that joint.”
How is arthritis treated?
Generally, once you are done growing (in your teens), cartilage has severely limited potential to regenerate. In younger patients that lose cartilage from an injury in one spot in the joint, a focused cartilage transplant type of procedure can be performed. However, global degeneration of the cartilage lining of joints from age and genetics is inevitable. As such, while we can treat your arthritis and make you functional and pain-free again, there is no true “cure” for arthritis, just as there is no cure for aging.
