Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis (OA), also called degenerative joint disease, is a common chronic disorder characterised by degeneration of joints. It's the most common type of arthritis. It usually affects weight-bearing joints like the knees, hips, feet, as well as joints of the spine and hands.

Diagnosis and evaluation

No laboratory test is available for OA. The diagnosis is made based on typical clinical findings.

Imaging

Radiography is the gold standard imaging modality for evaluation of OA. In case of OA, the following findings are typical:

• Joint space narrowing
• Subchondral sclerosis
• Subchondral cysts
• Osteophytes

However, many of the above findings are present in asymptomatic people, and many people with clinically certain OA have few findings on imaging. It is therefore important to focus on the clinical findings for the diagnosis. Imaging may be used for follow-up or to rule out differential diagnoses.

This article is a stub, meaning that it is unfinished. It will eventually be expanded.