Osteoarthiritis

Osteoarthiritis (OA)/ is a localized joint disease which involves all the components of the joint resulting in toatal joint failure. Its a degenerative  joint disease,which involves  a group of abnormalities leading to the  degradation of joints including articular cartilage and bone. Osteoarthritis is a condition in which the cartilage that acts as a cushion between bones in joints begins to wear out, causing inflammation and pain in joints, thereby restricting movement. The common regions affected by osteoarthritis are joints of the hands and fingers, knees, big toe. The symptoms can vary from simple pain on movements to complete loss of joint mobility.

Symptoms

joint pain, tenderness, stiffness, locking, and sometimes an effusion, aching joint pain, limited movement, grating of joint with movement, painful bony growths in the finger joints to joint pain in wrist, knee, foot, elbow, low back pain and sometimes joint inflammation

Causes

There are many factors which include gender, age,hereditary, developmental, metabolic,  mechanical, menopausal women(low eostrogen levels) obesity, smoking, osteoporosis, joint injury, nutrition

Primary OA

As as person ages, the water content of the cartilage decreases causing the cartilage to degenerate. inflamation of the surrounding joint capsule can also occur, This can happen as breakdown products from the cartilage are released into the synovial space, and the cells lining the joint attempt to remove them. New bone outgrowths, called spur formation, can form on the margins of the joints,. These bone changes, together with the inflammation will make the condition more painful .

Secondary OA

This condition is mainly due to other factors like diabetes. Inflammatory joint diseases. Injury to joints, accident, infection of a joint , obesity

Osteoarthiritis and Ayurveda

Osteoarthiritis is a degenarative condition and mainly affecting joints, in ayurveda the degenerative process occurs due to the imbalance in vata dosha which mainly maintain movements, as a result of increased vata dosha the aeging process will increase and resulting in degeneration of soft tissue, the soft tissue like cartilages are mainly kapha predominant(slishmika) and it maintains the stability of joints .due to increased vata dosha rooksha guna (dryness) the kapha will get vitiated leading to its degradation, inflamatory pathology is mainly pitta predominant and as a result of these degenerative condition making the joint instable and the inflamatory pathology making it tender.

External lepanas are recommanded with special oral medication for reducing inflamation, after the inflamation getting reduced the suppoting muscles should be loosend to get rid off stiffness and the bones should be repositioned using bandages, external heat modalities are used to increase blood circulation and the degenerated soft tissue is rebuild using special oral medication, the last process is mainly strengthening the muscles to hold the joints

Ayurvedic management

• ALLEVIATE PAIN
• IMPROVE FUNCTION
• DECREASE DISABILITY/ARREST PROGRESSION
• PHARMACOLOGICAL+NON-PHARMACOLOGICAL(Yoga,meditation,physiotherapy)

PHARMACOLOGICAL

Internal Medicine

These mainly include medicines which can reduce inflamation and stiffness of joints and promote tissue and cartilage regeneration.

External Medicine

Abhyangam, tractions, bandages, lepanam, katee vasti, differnet types of heat modalities, different panchakarma procedures,

ALLOPATHIC Treatment

Oral steroids are not recommended in the treatment of OA because of their modest benefit and high rate of adverse effects. Injection of glucocorticoids (such as hydrocortisone) leads to short term pain relief that may last between a few weeks