How is osteoarthritis diagnosed? Osteoarthritis will be diagnosed by a doctor, maybe your family doctor or a specialist such as a rheumatologist or orthopaedic surgeon. He will begin asking questions about your medical history which includes your symptoms and details about them such as when and how they began. Questions will also include blood relative’s family health history. For example, did Pop deal with osteoarthritis during his lifetime?
A physical exam will be performed. The doctor will touch and look at the joint and have you move it. He will probably ask you to stand and walk (for hip and knee symptoms) to see how the joint moves.
Laboratory tests such as a joint aspiration (drawing some fluid out of the joint and sending it to a laboratory for analysis) may be done to help make a diagnosis. In some cases, blood work may be done to rule out other possible illnesses.
X-rays may be ordered to complete a diagnosis of osteoarthritis. The joint space is smaller than normal when a person has osteoarthritis damage to the joint and the decreased joint space shows on an x-ray.
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