In an interview with the rheumatology podcast, “Joint Action,” Dr. Loeser provides insights from the latest research to address common misconceptions regarding osteoarthritis.
“The term ‘wear and tear’ was used a lot in the past and it had a negative consequence on the understanding of osteoarthritis,” said Dr. Loeser. “If you think of your joint as something that simply wears out over time, like an automobile tire…it suggests there’s nothing you can do about it, and your only option is to have a joint replacement.
“The difference is that your joints are made up of living tissues, and the cells in these tissues are releasing factors that cause the breakdown of the tissue,” said Loeser.
With the right understanding of what’s going on, he added, you can come up with a new treatment for osteoarthritis instead of just choosing to do joint replacements.
You can listen to the complete podcast via this link.