Osteoarthritis - among the diseases of the joints, osteoarthritis is well known and widespread. What is it and how to treat it? What are the symptoms of the disease and what are its main causes?
What is osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis is a disease that affects the joints, so they have cartilage degradation.
The long duration of the disease causes changes in the bone ends, and inflammatory processes destroy nearby tissues.
The list of articular diseases associated with osteoarthritis is not small and is a group of diseases with similar destructive effects, but with different causes and processes.
According to statistics, up to 80% of the population suffers from various types of osteoarthritis, which makes it the most common joint disease. The disease is so common that it ranks third after oncology and cardiovascular disease.
The risk of disease increases significantly over time due to a lack of a healthy lifestyle.
Osteoarthritis is not such a prominent disease and can affect both men and women, only it moves more faithfully in the interphalangeal joints. People over the age of 30 are susceptible to the disease, and over time their number is growing steadily.
Causes of osteoarthritis
The reason for such osteoarthritis and treatment is a violation of joint metabolic processes. This causes the cartilage to lose its strength and elasticity.
This is due to the large cracks in the cartilage, which significantly reduce or eliminate proteoglycans.
Other causes can help, such as disruption of the normal production of proteoglycans by the cells themselves.
Additional causes of destructive effects on the joints:
- disruption of metabolic processes in the body;
- deterioration of the hormonal background;
- slow down blood circulation in the joints;
- hereditary causes;
- old age;
- various injuries;
- rheumatoid arthritis;
- psoriasis
However, the main reason is that normal loads are not observed in the joints in daily life.
Their unpreparedness, unwillingness of a person to perform physical exercises on time, warm-ups to strengthen the joints - the cartilage can not fully perform its functions.
An extensive list of possible causes of osteoarthritis:
- previous injuries, such as dislocations, fractures, bruises, hernias, etc . ;
- disruption of metabolic processes that support vitality;
- excessive body weight, which causes excessive stress on the joints;
- acute purulent arthritis causing inflammation of the joint;
- old age;
- nutrition;
- long-term excessive decrease in body temperature;
- autoimmune diseases such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis;
- body poisoning;
- frequent colds;
- specific diseases: syphilis, tuberculosis, gonorrhea, tick-borne encephalitis;
- thyroid diseases;
- hemophilia;
- Peters disease.
Additional genetic causes of osteoarthritis include:
- Arthrosis of the hands and fingers can be inherited, as evidenced by scientists studying the Bouchard and Heberden knots;
- In the case of dysplasia developed as a result of impaired joint formation in the prenatal period, excessive wear of the joints and the development of osteoarthritis may occur;
- Mutations in type 2 collagen can disrupt the internal structure of connective tissue fibrillar protein and degrade cartilage.
If you are a bricklayer, miner, fisherman, loader, or your activity is associated with excessive physical exertion, there is a chance that you will get osteoarthritis without taking any preventive measures.
Symptoms of osteoarthritis
To fully understand what osteoarthritis is and how it is treated, we will deal with external manifestations.
The most common symptoms of osteoarthritis are: pain during joint stress, which may decrease at rest; deterioration of motor function of the joint; appearance of crisps; feeling of muscle tension around the affected joint.
The main thing is not to allow long-term tumors, as they can cause premature deformation of the joint.
Four symptoms of osteoarthritis
- Manifestations of pain. They are considered the first message of arthrosis of the joints. Although the culprits of pain can have different causes, in the case of osteoarthritis, pain has certain characteristics. The main thing is the presence of severe pain during movement at the site of the damaged joint. After minimizing functional activity, the pain disappears. Pain at night does not manifest itself in virtually any way, only slight discomfort may appear with side-by-side strokes. Pain in the state of inactivity can manifest itself only in advanced forms. At this time, the process of falling asleep can be difficult. Symptoms reappear early in the morning. As the disease progresses, a person needs more and more time to rest and recover. Even later, even at rest, the pain does not stop, it turns life into constant torture. There is almost complete erosion of cartilage, as a result of which the bone is exposed, osteophytes are removed.
- Appearance of crackles. A symptom that should not be ignored. The crack is due to the bones rubbing against each other, as the softness between them decreases - resulting in a different "dry" sound. However, it can occur with other diseases, sometimes even when the joints are healthy. In severe forms of the disease, the voice may be more pronounced, the pain intensifies.
- Decreased joint mobility. This is an additional symptom that is not accompanied by osteoarthritis in the early stages, but in a neglected state, it stimulates the overgrowth of interosseous formations that cause spasms, and the space between the joints grows almost completely. And this is the main reason for the loss of mobility.
- Joint deformation. This symptom involves degenerative changes in the surfaces of the joints due to the growth of osteophytes and leakage of synovial fluid. This is one of the last symptoms of osteoarthritis.
Self-diagnosis of osteoarthritis is more difficult due to changes in remission and exacerbation periods. Therefore, it is not enough to rely only on personal feelings - the help of a specialist is required.
Diagnosis - osteoarthritis
A study using radiography is used to detect possible symptoms that indicate the presence and severity of the disease:
- In the first stage, osteophytes do not yet exist and the space between the joints is minimized.
- The second stage is characterized by a decrease in space with a slight appearance of osteophytes.
- In the third stage, the reduction in the joint space is clearly visible, a large number of osteophytes are formed, and deformation processes begin to occur.
- In the last fourth stage, the space between the joints almost completely disappears, the maximum possible number of osteophytes appear, and the deformation processes are fully accelerated.
Negative consequences of osteoarthritis
Ignoring the timely treatment of osteoarthritis not only leads to complete irreversible damage to the joint, but also to damage the spine.
Herniated discs can form in the intervertebral discs. Osteoarthritis can spread to other, still healthy joints.
Treatment methodology
As with any other dangerous disease, it is better not to start treatment, but to carry it out at an early stage.
Treatments should be comprehensive and aimed at eliminating the connections that contribute to the progression of the disease, as well as strengthening the factors that contribute to treatment.
What is so special about the treatment of osteoarthritis? An integrated approach to therapy involves the use of anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs.
However, physiotherapy courses are mandatory. When choosing a sanitary-spa treatment, the climatic conditions should be chosen so that the effect on the joints is as favorable as possible.
The program should include procedures in mineral waters and mud baths.
The essence of the treatment of osteoarthritis is as follows:
- The patient's joints should be exposed to as little load as possible, which is especially important to consider in the treatment process;
- You can't ignore the orthopedic regimen;
- Mandatory physical exercises that improve health;
- Carrying out physiotherapeutic procedures, for example: electropros procedures, shock wave procedures, laser therapy;
- sanatorium rehabilitation - is prescribed by a doctor and it is recommended to visit special resorts once a year;
- Oxygen therapy - co-administration of oxygen;
- Treatment;
- intraosseous block;
- Switch to a healthy diet.
Types of drug treatment
- Means to eliminate inflammatory processes. With complex treatment, there is a chance to significantly slow down the course of the disease and thus save yourself from pain in the future. The drug method of treatment involves the elimination of pain and inflammatory processes in the joints. Non-steroidal drugs are selected for this purpose. They are often administered intravenously or intramuscularly, as their oral use can irritate the stomach walls. Various ointments are used as an adjunct, but they are less effective due to poor absorption by the body, so they are rarely used.
- Hormonal corticosteroids. Such drugs are prescribed when the disease is exacerbated. They are included in the merger. Ointment, plaster or tincture with hot pepper is applied to the affected joint from the outside.
- Use of chondroprotectors. They will help regenerate cartilage and additionally improve the properties of synovial fluid. Medications such as glucosamine or chondroitin sulfate are prescribed.
The duration of use of these drugs can be long and does not stop until the patient significantly improves.
If the drugs do not give the expected positive effect, their use is canceled.
In parallel with chondroprotectors, you should take products with the addition of hyaluronic acid, which helps to build cell membranes in articular cartilage.
In very rare cases, narcotic analgesics may be prescribed when no other medication is effective.
Healthy nutrition for osteoarthritis patients
Nutrition is perhaps the most important issue that needs to be addressed as soon as possible when the condition worsens with osteoarthritis. No matter what medication the patient is treated with, with proper nutrition, all these efforts can be in vain.
First of all, eat in moderation. For those who are overweight, you need to lose weight urgently, but you should not force yourself to go hungry, because the body must always receive enough of all trace elements.
You need to limit the use of fast carbohydrates in sweet foods, as well as flour products. Stay away from alcohol, especially beer.
Fish dishes are accepted. It is worth choosing low-fat varieties and fish should not be fried.
The use of jelly is recommended for osteoarthritis. As it contains a large amount of trace elements, it will be useful for diseased joints.
Its collagen is of natural origin, ie it is easily absorbed by the body and will play a key role in connective tissue. With long-term use of jelly, the joints will be more mobile and the surrounding tissues will be elastic and durable.
An important factor in treatment is the timely use of sufficient amounts of vitamins, especially B group. They ensure the normalization of metabolic processes in the body. The thiamine in beans and peas will improve the metabolic process of fats, proteins and carbohydrates.
Pyridoxine is needed for hemoglobin to form in the blood. It is rich in potatoes, bananas, cabbage and nuts. Riboflavin is rich in eggs, liver, dairy products and mushrooms.
Legumes and herbs will provide the body with folic acid. The industry offers a wide range of vitamin supplements and dietary supplements.
However, vitamins and trace elements from food are better absorbed by the body, which is an important factor in the process of cartilage tissue regeneration.
In the treatment of osteoarthritis, it is necessary to follow certain nutritional rules
- Meals should be frequent and in small portions;
- You can't eat before bed, you have to give up foods that are heavy for the stomach;
- Weight control and prevention of obesity are necessary to alleviate the burden on painful joints;
- Walking after meals during remission is a useful prevention of exacerbation of joint diseases;
- Choosing or adjusting your diet with your doctor will ensure a well-balanced diet.
Thus, it is possible to defeat osteoarthritis. It is important to follow the treatment methodology and listen to the recommendations of the attending physician.