Cartilage is the slippery tissue that covers the ends of bones in a joint. Healthy cartilage allows bones to slip over one another. It also absorbs the energy from the moving joint. In osteoarthritis, the cartilage wears away, leaving the bones beneath it to rub together. This rubbing causes pain, swelling, and loss of motion. Tiny bits of bone and cartilage can break off inside the joint area. This causes more pain and damage.

Researchers think that osteoarthritis is caused by a combination of advancing age, excess body weight, past joint injury, and family history. Each person is different, however. In some people, the disease gets worse quickly. And in others, the symptoms are more serious. In most cases, osteoarthritis develops slowly. At first, joints may ache after you exercise or do other physical activity. The joints most often affected by osteoarthritis are the hands, knees, hips, and spine..

Osteoarthritis of the hip can cause severe disability. The pain can also appear in the groin, knees, inner thigh, and buttocks. The condition can limit how much a person can move and bend. This makes daily activities difficult. A cane or walker can reduce the stress on the hip, and medicine and exercise can help ease pain. The doctor may recommend hip replacement if the pain is severe and doesn't get better with other methods.

An X-ray may not show joint damage early on in the condition. To help diagnose osteoarthritis, the health care provider will also note symptoms and when they appeared. He or she will also look at the affected joints. The provider will also do a physical exam and take a clinical history that describes the symptoms, and when and how they started. These are important to make sure symptoms are not caused by another medical condition.

Exercise is one of the best treatments for osteoarthritis. Exercise can ease pain, make you more flexible, help with weight control, and improve cardiovascular fitness. The affected joints also need regular rest, so they are not overexerted. Using relaxation techniques or reducing stress can help rest the joints. So can using a cane or splint to take the pressure off them. A person who is overweight or obese should lose weight to reduce the stress on weight-bearing joints. Other nondrug methods of treatment include hot packs or a warm bath or shower, and water therapy in a heated pool. For more severe osteoarthritis, you may need surgery to replace, resurface, or reposition bones.

All of these medicines are used for pain relief in osteoarthritis. Aspirin and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs have more side effects than acetaminophen. They can irritate the stomach and occasionally can affect how the kidneys work. Hyaluronic acid is used to treat osteoarthritis of the knee. It is injected into the joint to help joint lubrication. Another treatment choice is getting the medicine glucocorticoid injected.

Other suggestions from the Arthritis Foundation:

• Exercise to strengthen the muscles that surround your joints.
• Use your largest joints and muscles when you lift or carry objects.
• Alternate periods of intense activity with periods of rest to avoid repetitive stress on joints.
• If you sit for long periods, change your position regularly to ease stiffness.