Hello

jooms

Just joined. Hi. Osteoarthritis in knees diagnosed 2.5 years ago but no previous problems until that 2 day hike. Now waiting hip replacement?! Can't seem to get information or answers from NHS but hopefully will do on this forum.

[Deleted User]

Hi,
Welcome to the forum, you've come to the right place to help you manage your OA.

I'm sorry to hear that you're struggling with getting answers from the NHS, hopefully other forum members will be able to help by sharing their experiences.

Our website is full of useful information that may be of assistance to you, here's a link to managing knee pain with OA https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/conditions/knee-pain/

If you can't find answers to everything you need on the website then our help line is open Mon - Fri 0800 520 0520.

I would encourage to get involved in whichever forums you feel appropriate.

All the best
ChrisB (Website Moderator)

dreamdaisy

Hello, my OA was diagnosed back in 2011 when I was 42 and came about as a result of the joint damage caused by my first arthritis. It affects both ankles, both knees, both hips, both wrists, one shoulder and is beginning in my neck.

There are between eight to ten million arthritics in the UK, the majority of whom have OA. As with any form of arthritis it is a degenerative and progressive condition and once damage is done it cannot be truly undone except via replacement surgery (if it's in the right kind of joint). I know when my OA is going to worsen, the weather has an influence as does my overdoing things and eating too many acidic foods. I cannot control the weather but I can control the rest.

As I see it the resulting inflammation of my doing too much is my body's way of trying to protect my damaged joints. The OA inflammation is a different kind to that caused by my other arthritis and more easily dealt with in that it goes within hours. Diet has very little effect and as for supplements well, I often wonder that if I had started taking them before I had any kind of arthritis things might be a little better now but hindsight is a wonderful thing. OA is a snake oil dealer's dream disease, especially for the self-diagnosed (my favourite kind of arthritic).

I began aged 37 and am now 60. I was born with auto-immune nonsense so the first arthritis was just more of the same: the diagnosis of OA, however, came as a shock as I had no idea one could have both.

Noone can foretell how each individual will be with their form of arthritis, I think the labels are convenient tags, no more. My neighbour had OA which stayed in one hip: duly replaced with no quibble about age (she was in her late 60s) she is back to normal. She told me to get a new hip. :roll: Silly moo. DD