How does your doctor diagnose osteoarthritis? First of all, he would want to know your medical history and the history of your family members. Then, he will probably ask you to undergo some tests before he gives you a final diagnosis of whether you are suffering from osteoarthritis or not. Though the symptoms of the condition are fairly clear, there are a few other conditions that could also have similar symptoms. He would need to see if you were indeed suffering from osteoarthritis or some other type of arthritis. If he diagnosed osteoarthritis, he would want to see whether you had primary or secondary osteoarthritis and which of the joints were affected. Any doctor would like to be absolutely sure before he makes a final diagnosis after which he will prescribe a course of medication and give you an exercise as well as diet regimen to follow.
It helps if you give your doctor a very detailed list of any diseases you might have had, what kind of pain you have, when it comes on, the joints that it affects and how bad it is. You should include all the symptoms or discomfort you have – if you get fever or a rash, if you feel weak, if the pain radiates to other areas, etc. You will also need to tell him about your family’s medical history and if anyone suffered from osteoarthritis. Your doctor might also want to know if you have had any surgeries, tests, procedures, etc. It might help if you wrote down the answers to these questions before you went to your doctor:
- How old are you?
- When did the pain first begin?
- Which are the joints where you experience pain?
- Do you have any other symptoms besides the pain?
- Are your joints stiff? Do you find moving them difficult?
- Are your joints swollen?
- Do you feel a grating sensation when you move your joints?
- Do your knees make a crackling sound when you move them?
- Are the joints tender and do they hurt when you apply a bit of pressure?
- Does osteoarthritis or any other form of arthritis run in the family?
- Are you being treated for any other condition?
- Are you taking any medication for anything? Any vitamins, supplements, natural remedies?
- Do you exercise at all?
- Are you in constant pain or is the pain intermittent?
- Does the pain get worse as time goes on?
If you have the answers to these, it makes things easier for you and the doctor to give you a better diagnosis. You should also carry your medical file with you so he can see what diseases you have had and what the treatments prescribed were. He will probably do a physical examination in order to see if some of the visible symptoms of osteoarthritis are present. For example, he might want to see to what extent the affected joint is swollen. If it is the knee, he will want you to move it to listen to the sound it makes. He might also apply pressure on the joint to check if it is tender.
The laboratory tests will probably include a blood test, X-rays, maybe even an MRI or magnetic resonance imaging which is a full body scan. The X-rays and the body scan will show whether there are nodes or spurs in the joints and it will also indicate if the joints are inflamed. The space between the joints can also be seen and the doctor will be able to determine if it is normal or whether the space is reduced because of a lack of cartilage. These tests also show up the state of the bone just below the cartilage so the extent of damage can be assessed. They might also draw out some fluid from the joint to test to see if there is inflammation and deterioration.
Once the doctor makes a diagnosis that it is indeed osteoarthritis, he will prescribe a course of medication for you. You need to ask him clearly what you need to do if you are allergic to some medicine, what to do if the pain and swelling do not improve, how soon you can expect relief from your pain, what you need to do to make it better and whether there is any symptom that would need to be reported to him at once. Most doctors will give you a detailed explanation and with their diagnosis and prescription, they will give you all the dos and don’ts as well as tell you what you can expect and when. A diagnosis of osteoarthritis is not the end of the world – in fact, if you get treatment soon, you can live a pain free life and you can manage and control the condition. While you can’t be sure of suffering from osteoarthritis, you can surely stop the degeneration with modern medicine. So if you have pain in the joints, go get that medical advice at once. It just means that you have a much better and more mobile life ahead of you.