What is Wear and Tear Arthritis - Things You SHOULD Know

What is "wear and tear" arthritis?

Osteoarthritis, known as "wear and tear" arthritis, is a degenerative joint disease.

It causes harm to tendons and ligaments, as well as to the cartilage that cushions the ends of bones.

When this happens, the bones of the joints rub more closely against one another, causing pain and inflammation, even changing bone shape in some cases.

 

What are its causes and symptoms?

There are numerous causes of osteoarthritis, and several risk factors raise the chance of developing it.

Adults 50 years and older are more likely to develop osteoarthritis. 

Also, women tend to suffer from it more than men.

Prior injury or trauma like a bone fracture, or a ligament tear sometimes accelerates the presence of osteoarthritis.

Obesity will add more stress to your joints, favoring the conditions for the disease to develop.

The overuse of a joint in a sport or a job could also result in osteoarthritis. 

Retired basketball players are prone to knee osteoarthritis, while barbers and sewists could experience it in their fingers.

Osteoarthritis symptoms will worsen over time and primarily affect your hands, knees, hips, and lower back.

You will see inflammation of the soft tissue around the joints.

If you apply pressure to your joints, they may hurt and feel tender.

Your joints will most often be stiff in the morning or after periods of inactivity.

You may lose the ability to move your joints in a full range of motion. 

In more advanced stages, your bones may develop hard lumps around the affected joint.

 

Best ways to prevent it

Maintaining a healthy body weight is key, as obesity is a risk factor that is easy to identify.

Physical activity can prevent weight gain and help you keep the mobility of the joints. 

You can find some very helpful low impact exercises perfect for those suffering from osteoarthritis on our channel. 

A healthy diet is essential, too, because the food you eat can favor the conditions that generate inflammation in the body. 

 

Best treatments to help

There is no cure for osteoarthritis, but some treatments can minimize pain and delay the further progression of the disease.

You can use simple over the counter acetaminophen and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen and naproxen to ease pain and inflammation.

Supplements of glucosamine and chondroitin can also help as they have pain-relieving properties, particularly if you have knee osteoarthritis.

Sometimes intra-articular injection therapy has advantages over oral medication. It provides targeted therapy to individual joints and allows higher dosage with fewer adverse effects.

The most commonly used intra-articular therapies in osteoarthritis are corticosteroids and hyaluronic acid.

No osteoarthritis treatment is complete without exercise. Regular exercise will strengthen your muscles, easing the pressure on your joints.

Some specific exercises will help you recover the full range of motion and reduce the stiffness of your affected joints.

Lastly, one of the most simple and fast acting ways to relieve pain from wear & tear arthritis is wearing high quality compression garments.

It can provide relief within minutes while also giving you additional support.

You can find recommendations of the best compression garments for wear & tear arthritis here: CLICK HERE

 

In the end,

Wear and tear arthritis, or osteoarthritis causes pain and inflammation, reduces mobility and flexibility, and decreases your ability to work and perform daily activities.

There is no cure for the disease, but some effective treatments reduce the pain and improve your quality of life.

Regular exercises can help your flexibility, joint stability, and muscle strength. 

And a healthy diet will help you reduce the conditions that favor inflammation of your body.

Ultimately, it's good to speak to an expert and see what is best for you.

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