Arthritis

What is arthritis?

Arthritis is a common joint disorder with multiple forms. It causes pain, stiffness, and weakness that worsens over time.

It can affect any joint, including the facet joints that link your vertebrae and the sacroiliac joints in your pelvis.

What are the most common forms of arthritis?

Arthritic conditions most likely to affect the spine include:

Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis typically develops in mid-to-late life. It’s caused by decades of wear-and-tear that erode the cartilage protecting your bones. The bones rub painfully together and deteriorate, triggering bone spur growth. These small bony protrusions develop to reinforce the spine but often cause narrowing (spinal stenosis) and nerve compression (radiculopathy).

Rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is another widespread form of the disease. However, its cause is entirely different. It develops when your immune system destroys healthy cells in the joint linings as though they were harmful bacteria or viruses. Rheumatoid arthritis usually develops in younger people and can cause severe joint distortion.

Ankylosing spondylitis

Ankylosing spondylitis causes inflammation in the spine and elsewhere. It tends to develop in adolescents and young adults.

What treatments help with arthritis?

Arthritis treatments include:

• Anti-inflammatory medication
• Physical therapy
• Disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) for rheumatoid arthritis
• Dry needling
• Orthobiologics like platelet-rich plasma (PRP)
• Epidural steroid injections
• Joint injections
• Radiofrequency ablation
• Spinal cord or peripheral nerve stimulation

Surgery isn’t a frontline option for patients with arthritis, but if other treatments are no longer working, the NeuroSpine Center of Wisconsin’s expert spine surgeons offer several procedures that could help.

What surgery treats arthritis?

If other treatments fail to provide relief from arthritis pain and mobility issues, your provider may recommend one of the following surgeries.

Spinal implants

Stabilizing the spine’s facet joints relieves pressure and pain. Spinal implants achieve this by maintaining space between your vertebrae and minimizing abnormal or painful facet joint movements. These interlaminar or interspinous implants are usually metal and attach to a segment of your spine.

Decompression

Arthritis can lead to spinal stenosis and nerve compression, causing pain, numbness, and weakness in your limbs. Decompression surgery reduces pain by making more room for your spinal cord and nerve roots.

During spine decompression surgery, your surgeon removes a small portion of bone from the affected part of your spine. Decompression surgeries might involve removing parts of the facet joints (facetectomy) and the foramen (foraminotomy). Laminectomy removes part of the lamina (the spinal canal’s roof), while laminotomy removes the entire bone.

You might need fusion after decompression surgery to stabilize the treated area.

Call NeuroSpine Center of Wisconsin today to benefit from the team’s exceptional care.