The medical history and physical exam

Your doctor will ask questions designed to identify the symptoms of OA and to distinguish it from other diseases:

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• What joints are involved? OA often affects a joint or joints on only one side of the body, whereas diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis affect joints on both sides.
• Does any sort of activity provide pain relief? Rest usually relieves OA pain, while activity can lessen stiffness and pain from other kinds of arthritis.
• Have the joints been red or swollen? This is usually a sign of rheumatoid arthritis and not often seen in OA.
• Has the joint been injured in the past?

Doctors will also conduct a physical exam, looking at and touching all the joints of the feet, legs, spine, arms, and hands to see how many of them are affected, and moving them to see if motion is impaired.