Osteoarthritis of the Hip
What is Osteoarthritis of the Hip?
Osteoarthritis, also called degenerative joint disease, is the most common form of arthritis. It occurs most often in older people. This disease affects the tissue covering the ends of bones in a joint (cartilage). In a person with osteoarthritis, the cartilage becomes damaged and worn out causing pain, swelling, stiffness and restricted movement in the affected joint. Although osteoarthritis may affect various joints including hips, knees, hands, and spine, hip joint is most commonly affected. Rarely, the disease may affect the shoulders, wrists and feet.
Causes of Osteoarthritis of the Hip
Osteoarthritis is characterised by damaged articular cartilage, cartilage lining the hip joint. Advanced age is one of the most common reasons for osteoarthritis of the hip. You may also develop osteoarthritis if you had a hip injury or fracture in the past, if you have family history of osteoarthritis, suffering from hip diseases such as avascular necrosis and other congenital or developmental hip diseases.
Symptoms of Osteoarthritis of the Hip
The characteristic symptoms and diagnostic test help in diagnosing the condition. You will experience severe pain confined to hip and thighs, morning stiffness and limited range of motion. Based on the symptoms, your orthopaedic surgeon will perform a physical examination, X-rays and other scans, and some blood tests to rule out the other conditions that may cause similar symptoms.
Management of Osteoarthritis of the Hip
There are several treatments and lifestyle modifications that can help you ease your pain and symptoms.
- Medications: Pain-relieving medications such as NSAIDs, COX-2 inhibitors and opioids may be prescribed. Topical medications such as ointments can be applied over the skin where there is pain. If the pain is very severe, corticosteroid injection can be given directly into the affected joint to ease the pain.
- Other treatments: Your physiotherapist will teach you exercises to keep joints flexible and improve muscle strength. Heat/cold therapy which involves applying heat or cold packs to the joints provides temporary pain relief. Lifestyle modifications can be done to control weight and avoid extra stress on the weight-bearing joints.
- Surgery: Hip joint replacement surgery is considered as an option when the pain is so severe that it affects your ability to carry out normal activities.
Non surgical treatment of Osteoarthritis – Biological
What are Orthobiologics?
Orthobiologics are natural substances such as cells, tissue, blood components and growth factors that are harnessed to aid in the treatment of orthopaedic injuries or conditions. They may be used to replace lost tissue, stimulate regeneration and healing, reduce pain and inflammation and improve joint function.
Orthobiologics may be obtained from your own body or from a donor. They may be administered in the form of injections or may require a surgical procedure. They may be used alone as conservative treatment or following orthopaedic surgery to enhance results.
What are the Conditions Treated by Orthobiologics?
Orthobiologics can be used to treat:
- Articular cartilage injuries
- Early osteoarthritis
- Ligament injuries
- Tendon injuries
When are Orthobiologics recommended?
Orthobiologics are recommended when rest, medications and physical therapy do not relieve symptoms and joint replacement surgery is not indicated. It may also be recommended following spine surgery.
Types of Orthobiologics
The different types of orthobiologics include:
platelets and certain white blood cells that enhance healing and reduce inflammation. PRP may be injected directly into the damaged tissue during an outpatient procedure or following repair surgery.
Bone marrow aspiration concentrate (BMAC): BMAC is obtained after processing bone marrow that is removed from your pelvic bone. BMAC is rich in stem cells, which produce proteins and growth factors necessary for healing and reducing inflammation.
Adipose tissue: Adipose tissue or fat cells have remarkable healing and regenerative properties. It is typically obtained from your waist, processed to remove impurities and inflammatory components, and then injected at the site of injury.
Amniotic products: Amniotic tissue products such as amniotic membrane and amniotic fluid can reduce inflammation and promote healing in tissues due to their cellular content and presence of hyaluronic acid. Amniotic tissues support the foetus in the womb. They are obtained from a consenting healthy donor following an elective caesarean section delivery. These products are carefully screened before use. They are available as injections or patches.
Cartilage transplantation: Cartilage transplantation is a procedure to restore articular cartilage in a joint by transplanting it from another region of your body or using cartilage from a donor. Articular cartilage is the white tissue lining the ends of bones that form joints. It acts as cushioning material and helps in smooth gliding of bones during movement. Articular cartilage damaged by injury or early osteoarthritis is replaced during this procedure.