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How do I know if I have osteoarthritis?
One of the first questions that asks a person suffering from some type of pain in some joint of their body.
We will tell you how to distinguish the symptoms of osteoarthritis .
How to know if you have osteoarthritis
The most important characteristic is pain .
The spine, knees, hips and joints of the fingers are often those most frequently affected by osteoarthritis. It is precisely in these locations that someone who begins with pain , especially when making certain movements of the joints , should be fixed .
When a possible diagnosis of arthrosis arises, the person should already be over 40-50 years old . It is very rare to appear before that age.
How is the pain in osteoarthritis?
General pain in osteoarthritis usually have a rhythm we call mechanical: it hurts more when the joint moves and improves with rest .
Another characteristic is stiffness , so for example a patient with osteoarthritis in the knees usually begins with pain and stiffness, especially when they are sitting for some time or in a maintained posture. Sometimes this rigidity causes an instability in the first steps but it improves as it continues walking.
Osteoarthritis of the hands
It is one of the most frequent sites in osteoarthritis.
In the hands may appear hard lumps that are typical of osteoarthritis. They are located at the ends of the finger joints (in the distal phalanges) and less frequently in the middle of the fingers.
While these nodules are formed pain may appear, but then the pain usually improves . The nodules can grow and become very visible, but in general only represent an aesthetic problem since they do not usually cause a loss of the movements of the hand.
The most limiting osteoarthritis in the hand is when the joint of the thumb is affected with the bones of the wrist , since the movement of the clamp, which is done so frequently, can become painful.
Osteoarthritis in the spine
In the spine, pain and stiffness are more frequent in the parts of the spine that are more mobile . That is to say at the level of the neck, in the last cervical vertebrae, and at the lumbar level.
Sometimes this pain can radiate to the arms in the case of cervical osteoarthritis or to the legs when osteoarthritis is from the lumbar spine.
Osteoarthritis of the hip
The hip is also a typical site of osteoarthritis , usually more common in males , unlike osteoarthritis of the hand that is more common in females.
Osteoarthritis usually causes pain in the groin and sometimes limitation of movement , discomfort when walking or perform certain actions, such as putting on a pair of trousers or fastening the laces of a shoe.
Sometimes the pain can radiate to the knee , and confuse the patient thinking that the problem is in the knee when in fact it is a referred pain of the hip. For this reason it is always advisable to consult a doctor who, after proper examination, can confirm the origin of the medical condition.
