Osteoarthritis of the knee may sound scary, but with Restore Joint Health as a part of your medical team, it doesn’t need to be. Frequently referred to as “wear and tear” arthritis or OA for short, osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease that typically affects the hips, knees, hands, and spine.
WHAT DOES OSTEOARTHRITIS DO?
Osteoarthritis is called “wear and tear” arthritis because it erodes the cartilage that protects your joints and helps them function successfully. Why is cartilage important? There’s a long list of reasons! Cartilage is the flexible, white-colored tissue that connects the bones in your joints. You can think of it as a cushion that prevents your bones from grinding together every time your body bends.
What OA does is deteriorate this cartilage, causing friction between your bones as they grate together. If you suffer from osteoarthritis, then you understand exactly how painful this can be!
WHO GETS OSTEOARTHRITIS?
Osteoarthritis usually affects individuals over the age of 60 and statistically afflicts women more than men although the reason is unclear. More infrequently, OA may affect people as young as 20 and 30 due to repetitive overuse of the joints or pre-existing conditions like sport or accident-related injuries.
And yet osteoarthritis is much more common than you might think! In fact, not only is OA the #1 most common form of arthritis, but more than 30 million people suffer from it – and that’s just in the USA alone!
SYMPTOMS
If any of this information sounds familiar, you may be wondering whether you suffer from osteoarthritis. If so, here are the most common symptoms people usually encounter:
- JOINT ACHING & SORENESS: May occur during or after movement.
- STIFFNESS & LOSS OF FLEXIBILITY: Usually occurs when waking up in the morning or prolonged periods of inactivity.
- SWELLING & TENDERNESS: Keep an eye out for joints that appear inflamed or tender to the touch.
- GRATING SENSATION: If you’re experiencing excessive popping, cracking, or friction in your joints, the cartilage connecting the bones may have partially or entirely eroded.
CAUSES
There are a variety of reasons that cause osteoarthritis such as:
- INJURY: As previously mentioned, osteoarthritis may develop due to old injuries related to sports, car wrecks, broken bones, and more. Even years-old injuries that have fully healed may affect your likelihood to develop the painful joint disease.
- OBESITY: Keep in mind that OA has a tendency to affect those who are severely overweight due to added stress on the joints, especially the knees and hips.
- GENETICS: Because osteoarthritis is hereditary, the disease can also be passed down through genetics if it runs in your family’s medical history.
TREATMENT
There is no cure for OA. You’ll find numerous options that claim to reduce pain and return your life to normal. What’s the best solution for you?
Our outpatient therapy does not involve surgery or opioids. Although other similar clinics across the U.S have been successfully performing this program for over ten years, we are one of the first clinics in Nebraska to now offer this personalized non-surgical treatment plan to restore a pain-free lifestyle. Schedule your FREE, no-obligation knee pain screening with us. Call 402-502-6009 today. You don’t have to live in pain.
