Glossary

Inspection of the inside of a body joint using an endoscope.

A joint disease that can cause joint pain, swelling and stiffness, and/or redness of the skin over the joint.

An undesirable event occurring during or following the use of a medicine or a medical device.

Fibrous, connective tissue found in humans that provides support to skeletal bones at specific sites and forms the smooth surface of joints.

Experimental investigations conducted in humans to determine the efficacy or safety of a medical drug or device.

A tough, fibrous protein forming an important part of skin, tendons, bones, cartilage and other connective tissues. Collagen helps hold together the cells and tissues of the body.

The ability to produce the necessary or desired results.

The ability of a substance, in this case cartilage, to return quickly to its original shape and size after being bent, stretched, or squashed.

A natural sugar that is one of the body’s important building blocks; filling many different functions, it is found in all the organs in the body.

Within the joint.

The branch of medicine concerned with the nature and correction of disorders of the bones, joints, ligaments, or muscles.

A joint disease that is characterized by a breakdown of cartilage and a deterioration of the fluid in a joint; symptoms of osteoarthritis include pain and stiffness.

The area of medicine that is concerned with the causes, development, diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the joints, muscles, and connective tissues.

An undesirable event occurring during or following the use of a medicine or a medical device.

The hyaluronan-containing fluid found in a joint that lubricates and cushions the joint.

The property of a fluid or semi-fluid that causes it to be thick, and resist flowing.

A procedure that restores the shock-absorbing and lubricating properties of synovial fluid in joints affected by osteoarthritis.