Abstract
Osteoarthritis has a venerable history, having been recorded in Egyptian mummies and in dinosaurs of the Pleistocene era. It is now obvious that the term osteoarthritis represents a syndrome, not a disease. Furthermore the term means different things to different people. To the pathologist it implies fibrillation and destruction of the cartilage surface with clustering of chondrocytes around the bases of deep clefts, remodelling and sclerosis of subchondral bone, changes in the composition and characteristics of synovial fluid and the development of marginal osteophytes. To the radiologist the word suggests loss of joint “space” (reflecting cartilage destruction), osteophytosis, bone cysts and increased density of subchondral bone. To the clinician the word conjures up a picture of a very common clinical problem where the patient complains of pain more than stiffness, and of functional disability but where the disease process is confined essentially to one or to a few affected joints.
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Further Reading
Bland JH, Stulberg SD (1981) Osteoarthritis; pathology and clinical patterns. In: Kelly W, Harris ED Jr, Ruddy S, Sledge CB (eds) Textbook of rheumatology, 1st edn. Saunders, Philadelphia London Toronto, Chap 89
Brandt KD (1981) Glycosaminoglycans. In: Kelly W, Harris ED Jr, Ruddy S, Sledge CB (eds) Textbook of rheumatology, 1st edn. Saunders, Philadelphia London Toronto, Chap 17
Brandt KD (1981) Pathogenesis of osteoarthritis. In: Kelly W, Harris ED Jr, Ruddy S, Sledge CB (eds) Textbook of rheumatology, 1st edn. Saunders, Philadelphia London Toronto, Chap 88
Brooks PM, Potter SR, Buchanan WW (1982) NSAID and osteoarthritis — help or hindrance? J Rheumatol 9: 3–5
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Jiminez SA, Lally EV (1980) Disorders of collagen structure and metabolism. Bull Rheum Dis 3–4: 1016–1022
Kwang AH (1981) Connective tissue; collagen and elastin. In: Kelly W, Harris ED Jr, Ruddy S, Sledge CB (eds) Textbook in rheumatology, 1st edn. Saunders, Philadelphia London Toronto, Chap 16
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© 1983 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Capell, H.A., Daymond, T.J., Dick, W.C. (1983). General Principles and Approach to the Patient in the Context of Osteoarthritis. In: Rheumatic Disease. Treatment in Clinical Medicine. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-3113-7_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-3113-7_2
Publisher Name: Springer, London
Print ISBN: 978-3-540-12622-5
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