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| Osteoarthritis |
| Etiology •Generally regarded as a degenerative disease. |
| Pathogenesis •Chondrocytes are believed to play an important role in the development of osteoarthritis. •Aging chondrocytes are believed to release numerous cytokines, including TNF alpha, TGF beta and prostaglandins that can cause breakdown of the chondroid matrix of the articular cartilage., |
| Epidemiology •It is the most commonly encountered disease of joints; most individuals above the age of 65 have some evidence of osteoarthritis. •The disease can occasionally occur in younger individuals with some predisposing conditions, such as trauma to a joint, developmental deformities or occupational reasons. •Thus, athletes offer exhibit osteoarthritis of selected joints, depending on the sport. |
| General Gross Description •Osteoarthritis is also know as degenerative joint disease. •Grossly, early stages of osteoarthritis can be detected by an increase in the granularity of the articular cartilage. •Subsequently, cracks and fissures can be detected in the superficial layers of the cartilage. •Eventually, full or partial thickness segments of cartilage slough off the articular surface and fall into the joint space. •The bone lying under the cartilage becomes highly burnished and thickened. |
| General Microscopic Description •Microscopically, evidence of horizontal and vertical fissures and fibrillary changes in the cartilage can be detected early. •Late in osteoarthritis, joint fluid gets forced into the bone resulting in the formation of cysts. |
| Clinical Correlation •Osteoarthritis is characterized by pain, morning stiffness and limitation of the range of movement of the affected joint. •Joints frequently affected by the degenerative process include the large joints of the lower limbs (hips and knees); intervertebral joints; and the interphalangeal joints. •The course of osteoarthritis is unpredictable; some patients stabilize at some level of discomfort, while in others, it can progress to be disabling. |
| References • Cotran RS, Kumar V, Robbins SL: Robbins Pathologic Basis of Disease. 5th edition. Philadelphia, W.B. Saunders, 1994, pp. 1247. |
| Osteoarthritis |
| Synopsis by: T.V. Rajan M.D. Ph.D. (T1X500M50230)[100] |
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