Osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis is often called degenerative joint disease (DJD). In this disease, the joint cartilage and the underlying bone deteriorate. As a result, there is an abnormal growth of bone in and around the joint.
Osteoarthritis can be secondary to trauma, old fractures, infection, neurological, circulatory, and metabolic disorders, and these cause is often unknown. The hip, knee, fingers, and spinal column are commonly affected.
In the hip and the knee, pain that increases with weight-bearing is the main symptom. Stiffness after inactivity and grating noises when walking or bending the knee are also common. The patient with vertebral involvement has backache and symptoms of nerve compression. Osteoarthritis in the fingers is characterized by knobby, frequently painless joints, called Herberden`s nodes.
Osteoarthritis is treated by drug therapy to reduce pain and by physical therapy. Joint replacement is done for hips and knees when the condition is intolerable.
Reference :Farrell J : Nursing Care of the Older Person, J.B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, 1990.
