Osteoarthritis, including arthrosis of the knee joint, is a degenerative-dystrophic change in the surface of the articular cartilage associated with impaired (reduced) blood circulation. Occurrence of arthrosis is most often accompanied by chronic hypothermia or injury. As the "roughness" of the surface of the hyaline cartilage increases, pain appears, restriction of mobility, and gradually the limb loses mobility. Considering that pharmacological drugs cannot affect the causes of arthrosis, treatment in hospitals never leads to recovery. According to statistics, almost every third inhabitant of the planet suffers from arthrosis, and this number is not decreasing.
Causes of arthrosis
• Destruction of the joint due to HYPOCOOLING!!!! Even if you once got very cold and did not warm your body, limbs, your joints get a cold injury, which can only be corrected with hot water. Because water is 30 times more efficient at transferring heat.
• Injuries - leading to a violation of the congruence of the joint, subluxation and dislocation of the joint. Treatment is the return of the joint to an anatomically correct position, in simple terms, reduction.
• Hormonal disorders (climax, endocrine diseases).
• Congenital defects of the musculoskeletal system.
• Surgical operations on the knee joint, injections into the joint, especially with hyaluronic acid, lead to acid burns on the “smooth” surface of the joint, leading to its destruction.
• Monotonous physical labor with increased stress on the knee joints.
• Overweight.
• Autoimmune diseases.
Symptoms of the disease
Arthrosis, including the knee joint, develops slowly and proceeds in a chronic form. In the early stages, the disease does not cause pain: a person feels only discomfort, stiffness in the lower limb. Gradually, motor restrictions increase. Without adequate treatment, the knee is noticeably deformed. To accelerate the development of arthrosis, it is enough to introduce just one injection of hormones or acids into the joint. After that, the course of arthrosis accelerates significantly. Motor functions are disturbed so much that it is difficult for a person to walk, sit down, get up. Deforming arthrosis progresses to disability of the patient. To save the joint, it is necessary to contact a qualified traumatologist or a chiropractor when the first symptoms of the pathology appear. And only after eliminating the disposition, turn to a physical rehabilitation specialist to treat the cause of vasospasm.
According to the severity, there are three degrees of arthrosis of the knee joint:
• 1 degree. Clinical manifestations of the disease are mild. Most patients do not pay attention to the symptoms and continue to lead a normal life. With arthrosis of the 1st degree, a person may feel discomfort in the knee after a long stay on his feet, intensive walking, physical exertion. The x-ray image shows a narrowing of the joint space, slight surface irregularities are visible, similar to sandpaper damage. If arthrosis is accidentally detected in the first stage, for example, during a medical examination, its development can be significantly slowed down and even stopped.
• 2nd degree. Pain in osteoarthritis of the knee becomes intense, it is difficult to ignore. Especially strongly the leg disturbs early in the morning or in the evening. During the day at rest, aching pain persists. Degenerative processes in the joint are reflected in the gait: a person begins to limp. During movement, a crunch is heard in the knee. Arthrosis of the 2nd degree can be complicated by the "articular mouse" - this is a condition in which a particle of bone or destroyed cartilage enters the synovial cavity. The foreign body causes severe pain that interferes with the movement of the limb. On examination, the knee is deformed. Perhaps the accession of inflammation, swelling. The x-ray shows a narrowed joint space and coarse irregularities on the surface of the hyaline cartilage, thickening of the bone.
• 3rd degree. A severe form of the disease that develops in the absence of treatment. Arthrosis of the 3rd degree is the cause of permanent disability. The pain in the knee is very severe, mobility is limited, the person cannot walk independently, every step is painful. The leg is deformed and begins to crackle strongly. On the radiograph, the doctor determines the degeneration of cartilage tissue, osteophytes on the surface of the cartilage, and the growth of connective tissue.
Diagnosis of arthrosis
To examine the patient, physical, laboratory, instrumental diagnostic methods are used:
• Blood analysis general, biochemical, immunological.
• Synovial fluid analysis.
• !!!!X-ray of two Joints on one film!!!!
• Ultrasound of the knee joint as an additional research method!
• CT or MRI, according to indications, is only an additional method of investigation, it makes no sense without a correct radiograph!
The examination plan is always individual and depends on the patient's condition.
Treatment of arthrosis of the knee joint
The therapy includes a complex of procedures. Drug treatment is symptomatic, and only alleviates suffering.
Although removing the symptoms and not the cause, there is a risk of having additional diseases associated with the toxic effect of their use. Recommendations for changing lifestyle, and maintaining your condition will make it possible to prevent the disease from progressing, or even cure it. It is important to treat arthritis yourself. Often, patients in the early stages of the disease use anesthetic ointments and go to the doctor when the joint is already destroyed, forgetting that the injury must be eliminated physically! The earlier treatment is started, the more effective it is.
Medical treatment
The doctor prescribes drugs to relieve inflammation, swelling, to reduce pain, activate metabolic processes and tissue regeneration. Medicines are selected individually.
The following funds are available:
• Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in the form of tablets, ointments, injections. Means well relieve pain, swelling, improve the well-being of the patient. They are toxic to the liver!!!
• Glucocorticosteroids in the form of injections directly into the knee joint. Injections are indicated in severe cases of the disease, when the limb is practically immobilized. They cause an increase in arthrosis and an early replacement of the joint with an artificial one!
• Pain blockades. They help to cope with the symptoms and alleviate the course of the disease, for a more comfortable treatment.
• Chondroprotectors. The drugs contribute to the restoration of cartilage tissue and slow down the destruction of the joint. The effect has been proven in experiments, but in real clinical practice it is not proven.
Conservative treatment:
Shock wave therapy. The method is non-invasive, helps to remove salt deposits, improve connective tissue trophism. With sparing use, it can be used in 1st degree of arthrosis. In stages 2 and 3, it can significantly accelerate arthrosis due to shock wave microtrauma.
Physiotherapy improves blood circulation, favorably affects the elasticity of the ligaments.
Plasmolifting (PRP-therapy)
The patient's own platelet-rich plasma is injected into the joint. The course of plasmolifting accelerates tissue regeneration.
Phonophoresis
The method combines the effects of ultrasound and therapeutic ointments. Means for physiotherapy, as a rule, have a complex composition and are prepared in a pharmacy by prescription. Ultrasound increases the penetrating power of the active substance.
Massage
The procedure is contraindicated in the stage of exacerbation of arthrosis. When the inflammation is removed, the pain syndrome is reduced, you can start a massage course. Lymphatic drainage technique helps to prevent the accumulation of synovial fluid. Massage also improves blood circulation in the knee, relieves muscle spasm. The procedure is most effective after performing special exercises for arthrosis of the knee joint.
Bathing
Thermal procedures are the main physiological method of treatment. You can conduct a course at home as prescribed by a doctor or as part of a spa treatment. The main one is heat, which water transfers 30 times more efficiently than any other physical agent. With arthrosis, radon, turpentine, hydrogen sulfide baths can also be used. The procedures have a beneficial effect not only on the knee, but also on the hip and ankle joints.
Hirudotherapy
Medicinal leeches are placed around the deformed joint. The effect of leeches exceeds all known types of pharmacotherapy.