Orthopedics-Online

Overview of human bone diseases

There are a variety of bone diseases, often with many different causes. Here you will find a selection of the most common bone diseases.

Broken bones

Fractures are a complete or incomplete interruption of the course of the bone. They can be caused either by rapid or permanent overloading of the bone, such as a fall or crushing, or by a disorder of the bone structure that is caused by the disease.
The most common broken bone in the human body is a broken spoke, i.e. the forearm bone that is closer to the body when the palm of the hand is resting on it.

Here you can find more information about forearm fractures:

Broken spoke
Broken elbow
Radial head fracture

Fractures are always an emergency that needs to be dealt with as soon as possible. It is crucial that the blood supply to the bone parts is not interrupted for too long, since otherwise - like all other organs - if the blood supply is inadequate, they can also die.

Here you can find more information about different break locations:

Femur fracture
Femoral neck fracture
Pelvic fracture
Broken foot
Orbital floor rupture
Broken rib
Forearm fracture
Fracture of the lower leg
break of collarbone
Sternum fracture
Vertebral fracture
Broken wrist
Skull fracture
Kneecap fracture

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In order to be able to treat successfully in orthopedics, a thorough examination, diagnosis and a medical history are required.
In our very economic world in particular, there is too little time to thoroughly grasp the complex diseases of orthopedics and thus initiate targeted treatment.
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The aim of any treatment is treatment without surgery.

Which therapy achieves the best results in the long term can only be determined after looking at all of the information (Examination, X-ray, ultrasound, MRI, etc.) be assessed.

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A special form is the fatigue fracture, which occurs due to prolonged overloading.

You can find more information on the topics here:

Fatigue fracture
Fatigue fracture in the foot
Fatigue fracture in the metatarsus
Fatigue fracture on the shin
Fatigue fracture of the heel

Here you can find further information on the topic:

Bruised bone
Bone pain

Malignant bone tumors

Bone tumors can be divided primarily into malignant and benign tumors and secondarily into tumors and metastases arising from the bone.
The most prominent representatives of malignant bone tumors include:

Ewing sarcoma

Ewing sarcoma is a bone tumor that originates in the bone marrow and can occur between the ages of 10 and 30. However, it mainly affects children and young people up to the age of 15. Ewing's sarcoma is less common than osteosarcoma.

Ewing sarcoma is localized in the long tubular bones (thighbones or shins), as well as in the pelvis or ribs. In principle, however, all bones of the trunk and limb skeleton can be affected, metastasis is mainly possible in the lungs.

You can find more information on the topic here: Ewing sarcoma

Osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma is the most common malignant bone tumor with an incidence peak between 16 and 25 years of age and therefore tends to occur during the growth phase.

Osteosarcomas tend to metastasize (= colonization of other areas of the body with tumor cells), metastasis formation is particularly common in the area of the lungs or into the lymph nodes. The colonization of the lymph nodes is much less common. If the disease is discovered early enough, metastasis can be avoided.

Read more about the topic here: Osteosarcoma

Chondrosarcoma

Chondrosarcoma is the second most common malignant bone tumor and is derived from cartilage cells.

In rare cases, a chondrosarcoma can appear in different places at the same time. In these cases one speaks of a chondrosarcomatosis.

Read more on the subject here: Chondrosarcoma

Benign bone tumors

Compared to the malignant bone tumors, benign bone tumors usually grow only slowly and do not infiltrate. This means that they do not infect any adjacent structures and must be clearly delimited. The most prominent benign representatives include:

Enchondroma

An enchondroma is a benign bone tumor of cartilaginous tissue of origin (chondroma) within a bone.
An enchondroma is the most common tumor that can be found within the small tubular bones of the hand and foot, or on the pelvis or in large tubular bones.

Further information on this topic is available at: Enchondroma

Chondroblastoma

A chondroblastoma is very rare and is usually located in the epiphysis of long tubular bones.

Osteochondroma

The osteochondroma is the most common benign bone tumor. In most cases it starts from the growth plate and forms bulbous bone outgrowths made of hard bone material (cortex), which is covered by a cap with hyaline cartilage.

More information on this topic can be found here: Osteochondroma

Osteoid osteoma

An osteoid osteoma is a benign tumor change in the skeleton.
X-rays typically show local bone compression in the area of the hard tubular bone with a central cavity (nidus). Nocturnal pain that responds well to aspirin is typically described.

More information can be found here: Osteoid osteoma

Osteoclastoma

The osteoclastoma is also called a giant cell tumor. This is a tumor originating in bone marrow with histological evidence of giant cells.

Juvenile bone cyst

A bone cyst is a fluid-filled cavity in the bone and is incorporated under tumor-like benign bone injuries.
There is also a simple (juvenile) and aneurysmal bone cyst. As the name suggests, the clinical picture of juvenile bone cysts occurs in children and adolescents and is located in the metaphysis.

Read more about the topic: Juvenile Bone Cyst or Aneurysmal bone cyst

Degenerative diseases of the bone

arthrosis

Osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease of the joints, usually due to excessive physical stress. As a result, over the years the joint surfaces are increasingly worn away until more pain-sensitive areas are exposed in the joints.
In general, more women than men are affected by osteoarthritis. Risk factors for developing osteoarthritis are, for example, excessive weight, poor posture, but also previous operations on the joint. A genetic component of the disease has now also been proven, so that people with sick relatives have a higher risk of osteoarthritis.
In the early stages, patients complain of pain that only occurs when the joints are stressed. In the further course, the pain also occurs at rest and then especially at night.

You can find more information on the topic here:

Symptoms of Osteoarthritis
Diagnosis of osteoarthritis
Surgery for osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis attack
Osteoarthritis therapy
Causes of Osteoarthritis

Here you will find detailed information on osteoarthritis at various locations:

Finger osteoarthritis
Thumb saddle joint osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis of the shoulder
Elbow osteoarthritis
Wrist osteoarthritis
Hip osteoarthritis
Knee osteoarthritis
Big toe joint arthrosis
Ankle arthrosis
SI joint osteoarthritis

Inflammatory diseases of the bone

Arthritis or rheumatoid arthritis

Arthritis, on the other hand, is a chronic inflammatory disease of the joints, which in the majority of cases has its origin in what is popularly known as "rheumatism". Only in extremely rare cases is pain caused by a local infection of the joints.
The term rheumatoid arthritis is therefore more medically correct in this context.

Here you will find more information:

Rheumatoid arthritis
arthritis

The cause of the disease is still unclear today. It is believed, however, that a genetic predisposition leads to an inflammatory attack on the joints after a supposedly harmless infection.

Read more here:

Causes of Rheumatoid Arthritis

Affected patients often complain of joint stiffness in the morning that lasts for about 30 minutes. Closing the fist is also often more difficult and there may be reduced strength in the index, middle and ring fingers. In addition, other organs can also be affected in rheumatoid arthritis. This then leads to side effects, which usually do not come to the fore, but take a back seat to the joint problems.

Further topics related to arthritis can be found here:

Psoriatic arthritis
Juvenile polyarthritis
Reactive arthritis

Osteomyelitis or inflammation of the bone marrow

Osteomyelitis is an infectious disease of the bone. Inflammation of the bone marrow can be divided into two different types:

On the one hand, there is inflammation caused by the spread of germs through the blood
on the other hand, inflammation, which also originates in the immediate vicinity of the bone marrow, for example after an injury in the course of which germs reach the bone.

The signs of bone marrow inflammation are relatively unspecific and therefore difficult for the doctor to interpret. The patient presents with typical signs of inflammation such as swelling of the affected area, reddened skin, tenderness and overheating of the skin area. In the acute form, the inflammation can also be accompanied by fever and, in some cases, chills.
In children, the upper arm and thigh bones are mainly affected, whereas adults suffer from osteomyelitis mostly in the spine and pelvis.

You can find more information on the topic here:

Osteomyelitis
Temporomandibular joint osteomyelitis
Inflammation in the bone

Other bone diseases

osteoporosis

Osteoporosis, which is also known as bone loss, is a disease affecting the skeletal system in which bone substances and structures are lost or greatly reduced. As a result of this reduction in bone mass, the tissue structure of the bone deteriorates and it loses stability and elasticity. As a result, the bones become more prone to fractures, in extreme cases a fracture can even occur without falling.

Due to the increased risk of fracture, the bone can collapse, which is then shown by visible changes, especially in the area of the vertebral bodies.

Further information on the subject of osteoporosis can be found here:

osteoporosis
Therapy of osteoporosis
Forms of osteoporosis
Diagnosis of osteoporosis What kind of pain does osteoporosis have?
Prevent osteoporosis
Active against osteoporosis
Transient osteoporosis
Vertebral fracture in osteoporosis

Paget's disease

Paget's disease is a so far little researched disease that can affect female genital organs such as the breast in addition to the bones.
If the disease affects the skeleton, several bones are usually affected. Over time, the solid bone structure is remodeled to become a preliminary stage of bone tissue. In addition, this remodeling results in an increase in the circumference of the bones. Mainly the pelvic bones, the spine, the bones of the legs or the skull are affected. This disease mainly affects people over the age of forty.
Most patients have diffuse pain in the affected bones. If the skull bone is also affected, previously purchased hats no longer fit because the head circumference has increased.
In addition, spontaneous fractures can occur, i.e. broken bones due to situations that would normally not be sufficient to cause a bone fracture.
Here you can find detailed information on the topic: Paget's disease

Osteogenesis imperfecta or vitreous bone disease

The so-called glass bone disease is a genetically inherited disease of bone stability. Defects in a protein, which is important for the stability of the skeleton, result in bone fractures in the affected patient as a result of a small amount of force.
Treatment of the disease is not possible because the disease has a purely genetic origin. The only possibility is the best possible consideration of the patient and the patient's environment in order to prevent bone fractures.
Read the topics:

Vitreous bone disease
Osteogenesis imperfecta

Rickets and osteomalacia

These two terms are understood to mean "softening of the bones", which is caused by a lack of calcium and phosphate in the bones. In adults it is called osteomalacia, in children it is called rickets.
The main cause is a vitamin D deficiency.
Patients stand out primarily through skeletal pain. On closer inspection, there is also a recognizable deformation of the so-called long tubular bones, i.e. the upper arm and thigh bones. This can lead to the formation of knock knees or bow legs.
Read our topic:

rickets

Scoliosis

Scoliosis is a disease of the spine that usually begins in early adolescence. If you stand behind the affected person, a shift of the spine to the left or right side can be determined. In contrast to scoliotic incorrect posture, “real” scoliosis also involves twisting of the vertebral bodies.
Girls are affected much more often than boys. They usually become noticeable during an adolescent growth spurt when a misalignment can be recognized.
Read our topics: