BL Unit 4 Flashcards
What is the definition of Osteoarthritis?
- disorder characterized by destruction of articular cartilage and proliferation of contiguous bone
- end stage of all types of arthritis
What are common clinical features of OA?
- joint pain
- decrease joint mobility
- hypertrophic bony spurs (osteophytes)
- infrequent joint inflammation
- lack of systemic involvement
What are the symptoms of OA?
- pain with use
- improvement with rest
- stiffness for 40yo
- no systemic symptoms
What are physical signs of OA?
- localized joint tenderness
- bony enlargement
- crepitance (grating)
- restricted movement
- variable swelling
- doesn’t get better with movement
What are Herberden’s nodes?
bony enlargement in the distal interphalangeal joints (DIPs)
What are Bouchard’s nodes?
bony enlargement in the proximal phalangeal joints (PIPs)
What are typical lab results for OA?
- synovial fluid shows: 200-2000 WBCs, 25% PMNs, no crystals, normal glucose
- cartilage degradation products: hyaluronic acid, aggrecan, type II collagen
What would you see on x-rays of joints affected by OA?
- loss of cartilage space
- bony sclerosis (hardening)
- osteophyte formation
- joint effusion (but not inflammatory)
- cysts in subchondral bone
What are risk factors stats for OA?
- xray prevalence increases with age
- pathologic changes in weight-bearing joints in 100% by 40yrs
- inc. incidence for women if >45yo
- women have more severe disease and more frequent H and B nodes
- trauma/previous injury
- obesity correlates with OA of hands and knees in women
What is the difference between primary and secondary OA?
- primary: idiopathic; no known inciting event
- secondary: as a result of a specific event
Where does OA tend to affect?
- can be seen in knee or hip, esp after trauma
- generalized in DIPs, PIPs, and CMC joints
- weight-bearing joints that are heavily used
- spares ankle, wrist, shoulder, elbow
Describe the pathology of OA
- fissuring of cartilage
- hypertrophy of bone adjacent to joint (periarticular)
- cartilage surface has frayed collagen fibers
- chondrocytes proliferate
- proteoglycan content of ECM dec
- subchondral bone is more dense
- synovium can be inflamed or have infiltrates
Describe normal cartilage
- acts like a sponge (water squeezed out when loading and bring in water when relaxed)
- allows for joint movement without friction and absorbs impact
- no vasculature and no nerves
What are the 5 components of cartilage?
1) Collagen: 50% of weight; mainly type II; forms rigid framework
2) Proteoglycans: charged aggregates of GAGs; make up ECM w/in collagen fibrils; retains water
3) Matrix proteins: MMPs (proteolytic enzymes including collagenase, gelatinase, stromelysin); also TIMP to control these enzymes)
4) Chondrocytes: synthesize all the above EC stuff
5) Water
How does focal mechanical stress affect OA?
- can injure the chondrocyte and cause the release of degenerative enzymes and matrix breakdown
Describe the effect that inflammatory mediators can have on cartilage damage
- IL-1 promotes degradation of type II collagen and proteoglycan by stimulating chondrocytes to make MMPs; also stimulates prostaglandins, NO, and IL-6
- TNFa works with IL-1 to cause cartilage damage
- NO inc MMP production and inhibits proteoglycan synth; NO induces chondrocyte apoptosis
- Prostaglandins can inc MMPs
- IL-4, -10, -13, and IL-1Ra can dec activity of cytokines
- Some complement component –> cell death or inc degradative enzymes
- Cytokines made by adipose tissue can contribute
What happens with water early in OA?
- water content inc in cartilage –> destroys weave network of collage and proteoglycan –> dec proteoglycan –> inc degradative enzymes
What are the pre-disposing factors to OA?
- Genetics: point mutations in type II collagen
- Metabolic problems of cartilage: chondrocyte toxicity; calcium pyrophosphate crystals in ECM
- *Trauma: main predisposing factor; trauma –> chondrocyte injury –> imbalance of anabolism and catabolism –> ECM degradation –> OA
- Inflammation: inflammatory processes can eventually lead to OA secondarily
- Obesity
- Age: 75% of >70yo have OA
How do you treat OA?
- usually diagnosed late because waiting for symptoms and radiographic changes
- reduce risk factors (obesity and avoid repetitive activities)
- DMOADs
- individualize treatment: treating pain or functional limitation?
- NSAIDs
- analgesics
- hyaluronic acid
- surgery
What is RA characterized by?
- systemic, inflammatory, autoimmune
- peripheral, symmetric, inflammation of synovium (usually small joints of hands and feet)
What joints are usually affected in RA?
- small joints of hands and ffet
- cervical spine (C1, C2)
- cricoarytenoid, inner ear, TMJ
- occasionally medium and large joints; DIP spared
What are signs and symptoms indicating RA?
- morning stiffness
- warmth and swelling and pain around joints
- loss of function/limitation of motion
- deformities
What are lab findings for RA?
- RF in 85%
- ESR or CRP elevated
- anemia and hypergammaglobulinemia
- antibodies against cyclic citrullinated peptides (CCPs) in 70%
- cigarette smoking (risk factor for RA) and HLA alleles have a shared epitope
What do you expect to see in the synovial fluid for a patient with RA?
- > 2000 WBC/ul because of inflammation (neutrophils)
- complement and glucose levels low