How do you feel when you meet an elderly person on the street with a cane?Definitely sympathy, and also confidence that you will definitely not become like that!
No young and energetic person imagines his old age with diseases and lameness;rather, the imagination imagines a young smiling pensioner traveling around the world with healthy legs and with a snow-white smile, as in photos in foreign magazines.
But disease is an insidious thing.And above all joint diseases.Going unnoticed, various ailments gradually destroy and deform the joints, manifesting one fine morning with pain and the inability to move normally.
Among all joint pathologies, judging by the number of requests for medical help, the main one is arthrosis of the knee joint (gonarthrosis, arthrosis of the knee joint).According to statistics, every fifth inhabitant of the planet over the age of 40 suffers from gonarthrosis, and this disease “loves” women more than men.
What is osteoarthritis of the knee joint and is it possible to avoid it?Let's start with the definition of disease.
Osteoarthritis of the knee joint (gonarthrosis, arthrosis of the knee joint) is a degenerative-dystrophic alteration of the articular cartilage.
It can be primary or secondary, that is, it occurs against the background of other diseases.
Causes of arthrosis of the knee joint
Most often, gonarthrosis occurs due to:
- Traumatic injuries of the knee joint.
- Excess body weight.
- Increased physical activity, even when playing professional sports.
- Pre-existing diseases (usually arthritis of various etiologies).
- Weak ligament system.
- Metabolic disorders.
How does osteoarthritis develop?
Osteoarthritis of the knee joint is divided into degrees 1, 2 and 3. Let's take a closer look at the distinctive features.
Symptoms of stage 1 osteoarthritis of the knee joint
Gonarthrosis first manifests itself with pain when climbing stairs.A person feels discomfort in the knee joint, pain that makes it difficult to go down the stairs.In other situations, the pain almost does not manifest itself and therefore the patient happily forgets about it or takes some kind of therapeutic measures, completely trusting the advice of friends who "had it too."
It is the frequency with which pain occurs that postpones the visit to the clinic until later, which leads to the transition of the disease to a more severe, 2nd degree disease.
How does stage 2 disease manifest itself?
Stage 2 gonarthrosis is characterized not only by severe pain, but also by limited mobility of the joint.
Pain occurs more often, not only during exercise, but also at rest.
It becomes difficult for the patient to bend and straighten the knee, and during the movement a characteristic creaking sound is heard in the joint.
On visual examination, swelling of the joint and slight deformation of the joint are noted.
It is patients with stage 2 gonarthrosis who are patients in the clinic, unable to cope with excruciating pain on their own and, suffering from limited mobility, turn to a doctor.
Is grade 3 osteoarthritis synonymous with disability?
Stage 3 osteoarthritis of the knee joint is characterized by constant severe pain in the joint and loss of mobility.Radiographic examination shows dystrophic changes in the cartilaginous tissue and severe deformation of the joint.The so-called deforming arthrosis develops.
Arthrosis pain tends to intensify during the night and becomes more intense in the early hours of the morning.
A patient with grade 3 osteoarthritis can only walk with the help of a cane, remember our old man from the introduction?This is exactly him.
Treatment tactics for arthrosis of the knee joint
The process of treating arthrosis is a long process and requires perseverance and patience from the patient.The basic principles of treatment of gonarthrosis can be called:
- Systematicity.
- An integrated approach.
Treatment of arthrosis should be carried out under the guidance of a doctor.It is he who should give you advice on how and how to treat the disease, which must be followed very carefully.You can also add traditional methods to your medical prescriptions, but only after your doctor approves them.
The beginning of treatment for gonarthrosis, like any other disease, begins with the organization of a gentle regimen.With gonarthrosis, a gentle regime is created for the diseased joint.Physical activity and prolonged walking are excluded as much as possible.In your diet, you should limit the consumption of salt, sweets and fatty foods and include more vitamin-rich fruits and vegetables in your diet.
Pharmacological treatment
- To relieve pain, drugs from the group of analgesics and antispasmodics are prescribed.
- Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are very popular.Drugs from this group are not prescribed for long courses due to the abundance of side effects.Therefore, for treatment, long-acting tablets or injections and injections are often used.NSAIDs alleviate the condition of patients, but do not eliminate the causes of gonarthrosis.This mission has been entrusted by medical science to another group of drugs: chondroprotectors.
- The effect of chondroprotective drugs is based on the restoration of normal production of synovial fluid and damaged cartilage tissue.The drugs are very effective in treating grade 1 and 2 gonarthrosis.
- Therapeutic ointments, gels, creams.They are applied topically, used for rubbing and compresses.The pharmacy chain offers a wide range of drugs from this group;when buying, you should focus not on the advertising popularity of a particular ointment, but on the recommendations of a specialist.
- In case of exacerbation of the disease, not only physical exercise, but also massage and physiotherapy are excluded.They cannot be used in the acute period due to increased pain.As soon as the pain decreases, massage, physical therapy and physiotherapeutic methods should be added to the drug treatment.The following procedures have proven effective for treating gonarthrosis:
- Laser.
- SMT.
- Electrophoresis.
- Magnetotherapy.
- Ozocerite.
Unfortunately, in stage 3 of the disease, treatment with chondroprotectors has no effect.
Traditional medicine and gonarthrosis
In folk medicine there is a huge number of different recipes for the treatment of arthrosis of the knee joint.
Decoctions of medicinal herbs:
- cranberries,
- cranberries,
- thyme,
- corn silk,
- golden mustache
Taken orally and used for compresses.There are also methods using alcoholic tinctures for rubbing:
- bitter pepper tincture,
- fly agaric tincture,
- woodlice tincture.
In folk medicine, compresses with medical bile, apple cider vinegar, cabbage compresses and honey are also used.There is also a method of treating sore joints using raw fish, which is tied to the sore spot overnight!But we don't think there will be many supporters of using this recipe.
Important!Whatever folk remedies you choose, be sure to discuss the advisability of using them with your doctor!
How to prevent the development of gonarthrosis - preventive measures
Preventing the onset of osteoarthritis of the knee joint is not difficult if you think about it from a young age.How are prevention rules formed?Very simple.Read about the causes of the disease and do everything to avoid them, namely:
- Do not overeat, adhere to a gentle diet and the principles of proper nutrition.
- Let's distribute physical activity wisely.
- Don't get too cold.
- Treat any illnesses promptly.
- Avoid injury.
- Do gymnastics.
- Contact a specialist in a timely manner.
At first glance, the recommendations are quite simple.And if you follow them, gonarthrosis will not threaten you.And you don't have to worry about advanced age - at the beginning of the article we decided to travel the world on our own legs!