PCL 7, prognosis of osteoarthritis

Prognosis

Medical experts portray an accurate osteoarthritis prognosis this way:

· Most osteoarthritis cases do stabilize.

· Some osteoarthritis cases progress.

· A small number of osteoarthritis patients improve spontaneously

-The most current research, though, indicates that not all osteoarthritis patients worsen; some actually stabilize.

-Osteoarthritis itself is not life threatening, but the quality of life can significantly deteriorate from pain and loss of mobility.

-The negative effects on activities and physical and mental health are significant regardless of age, educational level, or gender.

-Five percent of those who leave the work force do so because of osteoarthritis.

- Unless alleviated by medication or corrected by surgery, advanced osteoarthritis can force the patient to forgo even relatively low-impact activities, such as walking.

-No treatment can cure osteoarthritis, and none can alter its progression with certainty, although many therapies are available that can relieve symptoms and significantly improve the quality of life.

-Symptoms often wax and wane (to progress through phases, alternatively). Sometimes this is related to things such as the weather. Symptoms often improve in warmer months.

Complications for osteoarthritis

· -Social limitation

· -Muscle inactivity

· -Frustration, depression, fatigue, stress

· -Need for joint replacement;Joint replacement tends to have an excellent prognosis in suitable patients who are motivated to do rehabilitation

Knee joint replacement may be recommended for:

• Severe arthritis (osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis) of the knee that has not gotten better with medicine, injections, and physical therapy after 6 months or more of treatment. Your doctor may recommend knee replacement for these problems:
• Inability to sleep through the night because of knee pain
• Knee pain that has not improved with other treatment
• Knee pain that limits or keeps you from being able to do your normal activities, especially your daily activities such as bathing, preparing meals, household chores, and other things.
• he results of a total knee replacement are often excellent. The operation relieves pain for most people, and most people do not need help walking after they fully recover. Most artificial knee joints last 10 to 15 years. Some last as long as 20 years before they loosen and need to be replaced again.

-Impaired ability to carry out day-to-day functions

-The prognosis varies from patient to patient with severity of symptoms and rate of progression varying depending on individual factors such as compliancy with management of the condition.

http://www.patient.co.uk/health/Osteoarthritis.htm