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Did you know there are over 50 different types of arthritis? They can be classified into three categories:
1. Inflammatory- for example rheumatoid arthritis
2. Metabolic- for example gout
3. Non-inflammatory- for example osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis (OA) has several different names, for example osteoarthrosis, wear and tear or degenerative joint disease (DJD) are all commonly used and the last two probably describe the condition better.
Anyway hip osteoarthritis is simply a wearing of the cartilage (the cushioning material inside the joint) so eventually, in severe cases, the top of the thigh bone ( the femur) rubs on the bone that makes up the socket for the femur (the acetabulum). Now obviously that is painful but what many people with hip osteoarthritis don't know is that in fact it is NOT the only cause of the pain and/or the stiffness they are suffering.
What Else Happens?
In most cases the wearing of the joint is not the only cause of pain for a sufferer of hip osteoarthritis.
The muscles, tendons and ligaments around the joint can give pain too. This happens because as the hip joint becomes worn it hurts and that means that you tend not to move the hip so much and you compensate by using the low back and the knee more. Also when you do move your hip you tend to limit the movement. The problem with that is that the ligaments, muscles and tendons (collectively known as the soft tissue) around the joint become irritated by not being used. These include the muscles in your buttock, your hamstrings, your quadriceps (the big muscle at the front of your thigh) and some of your lower abdominal muscles.
Soft tissue likes to be used and so it actually become inflamed with lack of use which gives rise to pain and stiffness when they are used. (If you are unsure about this just ask anyone who has fractured a bone how painful it is to get the soft tissue moving again after being in a cast for a while). This inflammation is also painful and so the hip joint is used even less.
The end result is a rapidly downwards spiral as the hip joint gets stiffer and stiffer and more and more painful as it is used it less and less. This is how your hip osteoarthritis can quickly take control of your life.
So What Can You Do About This?
The Arthritis Foundation says that
"Treatment of osteoarthritis varies with the severity of the symptoms and focuses on decreasing pain and improving joint movement."
There are lots of different ways they suggest you do this by using drugs, rest, physical activity, joint protection (splints and supports), use of heat and cold to reduce pain plus physical therapy.
So master all these and you will have learnt how to control your hip osteoarthritis symptoms!
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