Hip Arthritis

Arthritis literally means “inflammation of a joint.”

In some forms of arthritis, such as osteoarthritis, the inflammation arises because the smooth covering (articular cartilage) on the ends of bones wears away. In other forms of arthritis, such as rheumatoid arthritis, the joint lining becomes inflamed as part of a systemic disease. These diseases are considered the inflammatory arthritides.

The three most common types of inflammatory arthritis that affect the hip are:

• Rheumatoid Arthritis – a systemic disease of the immune system that usually affects multiple joints on both sides of the body at the same time
• Ankylosing Spondylitis – a chronic inflammation of the spine and the sacroiliac joint (the point where the spine meets the pelvic bone) that can also cause inflammation in other joints
• Systemic Lupus Erythematosus – an autoimmune disease in which the body harms its own healthy cells and tissues

Arthritis by the Numbers

Hip and knee osteoarthritis causes the greatest burden in terms of pain, stiffness and disability, leading to the need for prosthetic joint replacement in the most severe cases. (Litwic 2013)