Bone and Muscle Specialty Care
BONE AND JOINT CONDITIONS:
A SPECIALIST'S OVERVIEW
Bone and joint conditions affect Malaysians of all ages and backgrounds. In cases where the patient’s mobility is affected, or where pain is experienced, expert and timely intervention is necessary to maintain quality of life. As the range of treatments available continues to expand rapidly, OSC stays at the frontier of medical knowledge, providing a carefully-tailored approach for each patient’s unique circumstances.
Osteoarthritis is perhaps the most common type of joint disease, and can affect your knees, hands, shoulders, spine and hips. While often becoming most pronounced at middle age, osteoarthritis can affect younger patients equally. It is a degenerative disorder with inflammation caused by the progressive breakdown of cartilage in your joints. The most common symptoms are pain, swelling or loss of full motion in the affected joint.
Not to be confused with osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease that leads to inflammation of the joints and surrounding tissues. It happens when your immune system malfunctions and attacks the synovium (the tissue lining your joints). Typical symptoms may include morning stiffness that lasts more than an hour, and pain and swelling of the joints of the hands, feet and wrists.
Acute fractures are usually due to trauma, often associated with sports or accidents at home. Although fractures can involve many bones, typical injury sites are the ankles, feet, and the larger bones of the arms and legs. Older adults are more vulnerable to hip fractures because of balance issues, leading to possible falls.
BONE AND JOINT CONDITIONS:
SPECIFIC PROCEDURES
FAQs about Bone Specialist
Orthopedic surgeons are doctors who specialize in the musculoskeletal system – the bones, joints, ligaments, tendons, and muscles that are so essential to movement and everyday life. Orthopaedic surgeons will always explore nonsurgical options first, such as pain medication or rehabilitation. They also have the expertise to perform surgery to repair an injury or correct a condition, if necessary.
Many common injuries, such as sprained ankles, heal in a few days on their own with rest and basic first aid. However, waiting too long to see a specialist when you need one can worsen an injury and lead to more complex problems.
However, if you experience any of the symptoms listed below, please visit an orthopaedic specialist straight away:
- Intense, persistent pain that lasts for more than a few days
- Limited range of motion
- Instability when you stand, walk or attempt to change positions
- Persistent redness, heat, tenderness, swelling or stiffness in the injured area
- Sustained or dangerously elevated fever
- Pain, difficulty or lack of stamina in ordinary activities like climbing stairs or getting out of a car
- Joint pain that intensifies while you are resting
- Lack of improvement after physical therapy
