Osteoarthritis with a HLA-B27 positive

Dear Ask The Doctor: Im a 38 year old female diagnosed with Osteoarthritis in knees, hands, back and ankles. This started 2 years ago in both knees and both hands. The joint pain and stiffness has progressed quite rapidly. All of my blood work has come back normal with the exception of being HLA-B27 positive. My most recent back x-ray showed complete lumbarization of S1, sclerosis of SI joint and in facet joints, prominent arthritis with bony fusion of L-5-S1. My knee x-ray showed arthritic changes and joint space narrowing in the femoral joints. Radiologist stated fusion is most likely congenital and not related to spondylitis. My concern is how does someone my age, who has not had injuries to these joints, is not an athlete have Osteoarthritis in so many different areas? Should I be confident with this diagnosis or keeping digging for more answers? Note: I do not have psoriasis, I've been tested for Rheumatoid Arthritis, Lymes, Lupus, Sjogren's, ANA, Sed Rate and C-Reactive

Dear Julie: The Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) is strongly associated with an inflammatory disease called: Ankylosing Spondylitis, but it may be associated with other many inflammatory diseases as well, for example: Reiter Syndrome (reactive arthritis), inflammatory Bowel disease and psoriatic arthritis. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease that involves the whole joints, affecting not only the bones but ligaments, joint lining and joint cover (capsule) and also involves a progressive loss of cartilage. Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common articular disease worldwide, affecting over 20 million individuals in the United States alone. The main symptoms are the aching pain, stiffness or difficulty moving the affected joints, for example: fingers, hips, knees and spine. Besides the drug treatment as Tylenol, which is the first drug recommended for osteoarthritis, there are several ways to help to improve the quality of life as follows: keep the weight under control, regular exercise may help to strengthen muscles and stimulate the cartilage growth, avoid high impact sports, taking antioxidant vitamins as C and E may provide some protection, also vitamin D(400 UI per day) and Calcium (1000-1200 mgs per day), hot soaks and warm paraffin application may relieve the pain, there are also assistive devices that can be used to improve function, alignment, provide support or correct deformities such as splints, braces, walkers, canes and orthopedic footwear. The arthritis foundation offers programs aimed to educate the patient about exercises, nutrition, relaxation and pain management.