OUCH, My Aching Joints
Did you know that Osteoarthritis (OA) affects 1 in 10 Canadians? I am one of them, along with about 2,999,999 people in Canada alone. Osteoarthritis is a disease and the most common type of arthritis, according to the Arthritis Society. It affects men and women equally and can affect any age, though it more commonly strikes after age 45. No one knows for sure what causes the breakdown in the cartilage between bones, which causes the pain of OA, but there is a lot of research currently underway.
Cartilage acts as a shock absorber in healthy joints; it is the tough elastic material that covers the ends of bones and it is slippery, allowing bones to glide easily against each other as we move about. If a joint begins to develop OA, the cartilage begins to thin and become roughened and the underlying bone begins to thicken. There is pain and there can be swelling. Bone spurs (bumps) can be formed as the cartilage wears away completely and the bones rub together. OA is often thought of as the wear and tear arthritis. When I visited my arthritis specialist last week, a rheumatologist, she told me that if you get arthritis, then this is the one to get, referring to OA.
Scientists do not yet understand the reason for the breakdown of cartilage, as they are finding that regular wear on the joints should not cause the breakdown of the cartilage. Injury and overuse of a joint, however, can damage the cartilage and lead to osteoarthritis. Additionally, heredity may play a part as the way our bones fit together can be passed down from our parents and to our children.OA is most commonly seen in hands and weight-bearing joints.My arthritis is in the joints of my big toes. It makes sense, as I was a highland dancer as a girl, jumping up and down on my toes and balls of my feet. I also noticed this summer that my mom, uncle, cousin and I all have decreased range of motion in our big toes-AH HA! Perhaps it is a genetic predisposition. Next time you are together with your family, have everyone try some yoga and compare where you feel stiff and uncomfortable. Maybe we really can blame our parents for something! (Just kidding).
In our yoga classes, it is very important to protect our joints by practicing proper form and alignment while avoiding overwork and strain. Performed with care, our classes should be helpful, not hurtful to our body-remember Ahimsa (non-violence)-one of the 5 yamas. If you have swelling and pain in your joint, ice will be helpful. If you are achy, stiff and sore but there is no swelling, you may want to try heat or take a hot shower. Generally, cold will reduce inflammation and pain by constricting blood flow where heat increases blood flow promoting circulation and nourishes the muscles.When a joint is sore and painful due to OA, it is easy to favour the joint and not use it to its full capacity. It is however, important not to favour the joint.
You must take steps to preserve the joint function. You can do this with exercises like traction and range of motion. It is very important to preserve the joint function by using the joint. Otherwise the muscles that hold those bones in place will weaken or lose function completely. Your joint may then change shape and may lose all functionality and become fixed.Complimentary therapies such as massage, acupuncture and/or physio along with medication and supplements may provide temporary pain relief. I recently began trying the supplement Glucosamine. It may be 8 weeks or so before I will notice if it makes a difference to my pain level.
Pain relief, rather than cure is the main goal in the treatment of OA. PLEASE BE SURE TO CHECK WITH YOUR DOCTOR before starting any medication and supplements as a health precaution, especially if you are currently taking other prescriptions and/or supplements.There is no known cure.
Be thankful that you have OA and not another form of arthritis.There are over 100 different conditions that make up arthritis. The different types range from milder forms of tendonitis like tennis elbow, to OA, and to the more crippling forms of rheumatoid arthritis. There are also pain syndromes like fibromyalgia and there are arthritis related conditions like lupus that affect every system of the body. The commonality of all of these diseases is musculoskeletal pain, which is why they are grouped together as arthritis. The common denominator with this pain is often inflammation; inflammation is the body's natural response to injury. Signs of inflammation are pain, redness, swelling and heat.Inflammation is a normal part of many types of arthritis.
There are many forms of arthritis that you may never even have heard of. These include rare autoimmune diseases caused when the body's own immune system begins to attack itself, diseases like Wegener's Granulomatosis and Polyarteritis. The inflammation in these diseases occurs in the blood vessels. As the blood vessels are affected, they can cause organ failure and death if not properly diagnosed. The symptoms can be vague and can include general unwellness, aches and pains, weight loss, hoarseness and plugged ears. They are classified under arthritis due to the common inflammatory responses and the muscle and joint pain they cause.
You can find out more about arthritis from the Arthritis Society at http://www.arthritis.ca/
Did you know that Osteoarthritis (OA) affects 1 in 10 Canadians? I am one of them, along with about 2,999,999 people in Canada alone. Osteoarthritis is a disease and the most common type of arthritis, according to the Arthritis Society. It affects men and women equally and can affect any age, though it more commonly strikes after age 45. No one knows for sure what causes the breakdown in the cartilage between bones, which causes the pain of OA, but there is a lot of research currently underway.
Cartilage acts as a shock absorber in healthy joints; it is the tough elastic material that covers the ends of bones and it is slippery, allowing bones to glide easily against each other as we move about. If a joint begins to develop OA, the cartilage begins to thin and become roughened and the underlying bone begins to thicken. There is pain and there can be swelling. Bone spurs (bumps) can be formed as the cartilage wears away completely and the bones rub together. OA is often thought of as the wear and tear arthritis. When I visited my arthritis specialist last week, a rheumatologist, she told me that if you get arthritis, then this is the one to get, referring to OA.
Scientists do not yet understand the reason for the breakdown of cartilage, as they are finding that regular wear on the joints should not cause the breakdown of the cartilage. Injury and overuse of a joint, however, can damage the cartilage and lead to osteoarthritis. Additionally, heredity may play a part as the way our bones fit together can be passed down from our parents and to our children.OA is most commonly seen in hands and weight-bearing joints.My arthritis is in the joints of my big toes. It makes sense, as I was a highland dancer as a girl, jumping up and down on my toes and balls of my feet. I also noticed this summer that my mom, uncle, cousin and I all have decreased range of motion in our big toes-AH HA! Perhaps it is a genetic predisposition. Next time you are together with your family, have everyone try some yoga and compare where you feel stiff and uncomfortable. Maybe we really can blame our parents for something! (Just kidding).
In our yoga classes, it is very important to protect our joints by practicing proper form and alignment while avoiding overwork and strain. Performed with care, our classes should be helpful, not hurtful to our body-remember Ahimsa (non-violence)-one of the 5 yamas. If you have swelling and pain in your joint, ice will be helpful. If you are achy, stiff and sore but there is no swelling, you may want to try heat or take a hot shower. Generally, cold will reduce inflammation and pain by constricting blood flow where heat increases blood flow promoting circulation and nourishes the muscles.When a joint is sore and painful due to OA, it is easy to favour the joint and not use it to its full capacity. It is however, important not to favour the joint.
You must take steps to preserve the joint function. You can do this with exercises like traction and range of motion. It is very important to preserve the joint function by using the joint. Otherwise the muscles that hold those bones in place will weaken or lose function completely. Your joint may then change shape and may lose all functionality and become fixed.Complimentary therapies such as massage, acupuncture and/or physio along with medication and supplements may provide temporary pain relief. I recently began trying the supplement Glucosamine. It may be 8 weeks or so before I will notice if it makes a difference to my pain level.
Pain relief, rather than cure is the main goal in the treatment of OA. PLEASE BE SURE TO CHECK WITH YOUR DOCTOR before starting any medication and supplements as a health precaution, especially if you are currently taking other prescriptions and/or supplements.There is no known cure.
Be thankful that you have OA and not another form of arthritis.There are over 100 different conditions that make up arthritis. The different types range from milder forms of tendonitis like tennis elbow, to OA, and to the more crippling forms of rheumatoid arthritis. There are also pain syndromes like fibromyalgia and there are arthritis related conditions like lupus that affect every system of the body. The commonality of all of these diseases is musculoskeletal pain, which is why they are grouped together as arthritis. The common denominator with this pain is often inflammation; inflammation is the body's natural response to injury. Signs of inflammation are pain, redness, swelling and heat.Inflammation is a normal part of many types of arthritis.
There are many forms of arthritis that you may never even have heard of. These include rare autoimmune diseases caused when the body's own immune system begins to attack itself, diseases like Wegener's Granulomatosis and Polyarteritis. The inflammation in these diseases occurs in the blood vessels. As the blood vessels are affected, they can cause organ failure and death if not properly diagnosed. The symptoms can be vague and can include general unwellness, aches and pains, weight loss, hoarseness and plugged ears. They are classified under arthritis due to the common inflammatory responses and the muscle and joint pain they cause.
You can find out more about arthritis from the Arthritis Society at http://www.arthritis.ca/
posted by Andrea at 4:28 PM
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