After years of increasing pain and stiffness in your joints, after ordinary tasks like making your bed in the morning had become almost impossible, you finally spoke to your doctor. When you heard that your problem had a name – osteoarthritis, or OA – you weren’t surprised. In fact, you were a bit relieved.

But now you want to know what OA will do to your body, to your lifestyle, and how this disease may affect your future. You want to know what you can do to make yourself feel better, and to keep your OA from getting worse.

What is Osteoarthritis?

Osteoarthritis the most common form of arthritis, affecting about 27 million Americans. OA symptoms usually include pain, stiffness and swelling in and around the joints. OA can make daily activities more difficult. Your fingers may feel stiff when you try to grasp a pen. Your lower back may ache as you lean over to open a drawer. Your knees may hurt when you bend down to pick up your morning newspaper.

Where Does Osteoarthritis Strike?

OA affects joints, places where bones come together and move in various directions. OA typically affects the following joints:

• Neck
• Spine
• Hips
• Hands
• Knees
• Ankles

Other joints may be affected as well. Just because you have OA in one particular joint doesn’t mean you’ll develop it in others. But osteoarthritis symptoms may worsen – increasing your pain and decreasing your ability to perform daily tasks – if you don’t address them with treatment and prevention strategies. Luckily, there are many osteoarthritis treatments available to manage pain and stiffness and improve flexibility. You are in charge of your OA prognosis.

What Happens in Osteoarthritis?

OA occurs when parts of a joint, including cartilage, bones, fluid or its membrane lining (synovium), change and break down, usually over years. Cartilage and joint fluid cushion and lubricate a joint, easing the motion of bones. When these joint components break down, movement becomes difficult or painful. In OA, joints can feel stiff. Each movement can be painful. Joints can swell, further hindering movement.

As OA worsens over time, bones may break down and develop growths called spurs. Bits of bone or cartilage may even chip off and float around in the joint cavity. Synovial fluid can diminish in amount or quality.

In the final stages of OA, cushioning cartilage erodes, inflaming the lining of your joint. As a result, chemicals called cytokines (inflammatory proteins) or enzymes are released, causing more pain, swelling and damage.
 

Finally, bones may rub against bones with each movement of the joint. Even at rest, OA-affected joints can hurt terribly, affecting your sleep and your overall well-being.

What Causes Osteoarthritis?

The factors that lead to OA are varied and may or may not be things you can control or prevent:

• Aging
• Excessive or strenuous movements (sports or hard physical labor)
• Repetitive movements (sports or work)
• Heredity
• Obesity
• Injuries or accidents
• Muscle weakness

How Will Osteoarthritis Affect Your Lifestyle?

Because OA is a common disease, too many people shrug off its seriousness. Or, they think its effects are inevitable, so they don’t bother doing anything to manage it. Don’t make these mistakes. OA symptoms can hinder your ability to live and work normally if you don’t take steps to prevent further joint damage, manage your pain and increase your flexibility.

OA pain, swelling or stiffness may make it difficult to perform ordinary tasks at work or at home. Simple acts like tucking in your bed sheets, opening a box of food, grasping a computer mouse, or driving a car can become nearly impossible. OA pain, stiffness and immobility can affect your ability to perform your job, and can put a strain on your relationships.

What Can You Do About Osteoarthritis Symptoms?

While there are items (called assistive devices) to help you perform daily tasks if you have OA, and ways to get around performing tasks the typical way (called adaptive living), you can take steps to prevent your OA from worsening.

Simple stretching and regular, easy exercises can reduce OA pain, lower joint-straining weight, and increase your joint’s flexibility. Numerous osteoarthritis medications are available, either with a doctor's prescription or over-the-counter, to help reduce OA inflammation or pain. There are arthritis supplements available that may help control OA symptoms and make you feel better. Surgical techniques, including arthroplasty or total joint replacement, can replace joint components damaged by OA, restoring mobility and reducing pain.

You’ve taken the most important first step: Getting an osteoarthritis diagnosis from your doctor. Now, speak with your doctor and other health-care professionals, such as physical therapists or nurse practitioners, to develop an OA management plan tailored to your lifestyle and needs. The Arthritis Foundation has resources available both locally and online to help you put your plan into action.

OA, for now, isn’t curable, but it is manageable. You are the manager of your OA, and your doctor and other health-care professionals are key members of your team. You can take control of the way OA affects your body over time through physical activity, diet, medications and supplements, surgery, and most of all, a positive attitude about how you will keep living fully as a person with osteoarthritis.