[Morphology of articular cartilage in osteoarthrosis]. / Morfologii sustavnogo khriashcha pri osteoartroza.

A combined histological, histochemical, histoenzymochemical and morphometric study of 42 articular cartilage samples from patients with different degrees of osteoarthrosis (OA) was made. Ten cartilages without pathology taken at autopsy were used as controls. A characteristic feature in case of cartilage destruction by OA is a progressive loss of glycosaminoglycans (GAG) from the matrix with its defibrination and uzur formation. Decrease in GAG content is associated with partial destruction of chondrocytes and the emergence of cellular clones reflecting reparative regeneration of the cartilage. However, even at the early OA stage the reparation is not adequate, as the GAG content in the matrix at the sites of chondrocyte proliferation remains decreased compared to the control age group.

[Clinical aspects and classification of primary osteoarthrosis deformans]. / O klinike i klassifikatsii pervichnogo deformiruiushchego osteoartroza.

The authors reported the results of investigation of 70 patients with osteoarthrosis deformans followed up for 3-10 yrs. They defined 3 variants of a course of the disease: with rapid progression, slow progression, without noticeable progression. These variants differed in disease spreading, the frequency of arthrotic synovitis and the presence of hereditary predisposition. Signs of erosive arthrosis of the distal and proximal digital hand joints were noted in 12 patients with nodular polyosteoarthrosis. A characteristic signs in this group of patients was hereditary predisposition combined with local vegetative-vascular disorders and a strain on the digital hand joints, and degenerative affection of the cervical spine with the radicular syndrome.