osteoarthritis

The surfaces of the bones that form the joint are covered with a special hyaline cartilage - smooth, providing the least frictional force during the motor skills of the joint surfaces. If osteoarthritis is diagnosed, it means that the cartilage is in the process of being destroyed.

Progressing, the destructive process spreads to the bones and then to the joint capsule.

The disease has a universal code for microbial 10 - M15-M19, classifying it as a class of musculoskeletal and connective tissue pathologies.

According to medical statistics, 12% of the world's population suffers from osteoarthritis, most of whom are elderly, from 65 years old, people. However, each year there is an alarming trend of increasing number of cases among young people.

The diagnosis is not fatal, but osteoarthritis is insidious with its relapses and the threat of total disability.

source mechanism

The disease develops gradually, we can conditionally distinguish four stages:

1. Initially, an area of cartilage that is poorly supplied with blood, or damaged, appears at the cartilage site. Gradually, in the presence of traumatic factors, the area is not restored, but, on the contrary, grows.
2. The body, trying to restore the collapsed cartilage, replaces the damaged areas with mineralized tissue that lacks a clear structure. Such tissue is, in general, an inferior substitute for smooth, gliding and elastic hyaline cartilage.
3. Gradually, the surface of the cartilage becomes covered with scars and bone growths - osteophytes.
4. The healthy areas of the load have increased several times and wear out very quickly and as a result all the cartilaginous tissue turns into one big scar.

If the pathological process is not stopped, the joint will undergo the following adverse changes:

• bones are involved in the process of destruction;
• the synovial membrane becomes inflamed;
• the joint capsule becomes denser, losing its elasticity;
• the lumen of the joint space rapidly decreases;
• the bones, unable to resist friction, are deformed, like the joint as a whole;
• the tissues of the joint are reborn, so there is a complete loss of the possibility of movement.

types of arthrosis

This disease affects absolutely any joint surface! At the same time, despite the same mechanism of pathology, it is classified into several types.

So, depending on which joints are diseased, they distinguish:

• arthrosis of the knee joint or patellofemoral arthrosis (abbreviated as gonarthrosis);
• arthrosis of the hip joint (abbreviated as coxarthrosis);
• arthrosis of the shoulder joint;
• interphalangeal arthrosis;
• arthrosis of the ankle joint;
• arthrosis of the hands;
• cervical arthrosis;
• arthrosis of the jaw;
• arthrosis of the metatarsophalangeal joint;
• ilium osteoarthritis;
• clavicular-acromial arthrosis;
• temporal arthrosis;
• arthrosis of the heels;
• arcuate arthrosis affecting the arcuate processes of the vertebrae (abbreviated as spondyloarthrosis);
• arthrosis of the facet joint of the spine joints;
• tebral arthrosis;
• costovertebral arthrosis;
• talonavicular arthrosis.

According to the specifics of the course of the pathological process in cartilaginous tissue, there are:

• osteoarthritis deformans is the name of a disease that has passed to the terminal (final) stage;
• arthrosis, - the presence of a classic inflammatory process is characteristic;
• chronic;
• acute arthrosis.

According to the causes of the pathology, there are:

• dystrophic arthrosis of the joints associated with a critical metabolic disorder;
• fracture arthrosis, caused by the corresponding injuries;
• post-traumatic osteoarthritis.

It's important to know! There is no arthrosis of internal organs, for example, arthrosis of the heart is not a type of disease, but a consequence: a violation of cardiac activity due to the destruction of cartilage in the chest region.

There is another classification, depending on whether the disease is independent or caused by triggering factors:

• IM - occurs in completely healthy cartilage, another name - idiopathic arthrosis, or appears with age-related senile changes;
• secondary - caused by many reasons.

osteoarthritis symptoms

There are quite typical signs of arthrosis of all locations, which, depending on the degree of development of the pathology, differ in their severity:

• pains, pain syndrome, aggravated by high humidity and hypothermia;
• decreased mobility of the joint;
• crackling, creaking and scraping sounds during movements of joint surfaces;
• external changes in joint contour;
• swelling and swelling;
• skin redness.

pain

The earliest signs of the disorders are mild or moderate pain of short duration, which almost never occurs at night but usually appears only with a load on the joint surface.

When the inflammatory processes pass to their final stage, the patient begins to feel unbearable pain, "gnawing" due to stagnation of blood and increased pressure in the joint bag. Pain is characterized by a long duration, at any time of day, regardless of whether the affected area is at rest or in motion.

joint stiffness

This symptom is typical of a very advanced disease. At the same time, in the early stages, the patient still feels in the morning, upon waking, discomfort when moving in the form of a feeling of stiffness.

As the destructive reactions progress, the patient notices:

• limitation of the range of usual movements;
• the inability to change the position of the limbs at rest, even when trying to manually unfold the joint;
• strong fixation (contracture) in a certain position of the joint, which for a long time was in a state of lack of motor activity.

In the end, in the fourth stage of the pathology, ankylosis is formed in the form of replacement of joint tissues by scars, with complete loss of functionality.

Sounds in the joint

A crisis can be accompanied by any dysfunction of bones and cartilage, not just caused by osteoarthritis.

However, it is characteristic of this disease that the sound:

• occurs only in the painful joint;
• accompanied by difficulty in movement;
• tends to intensify with the progression of the pathology, and enters during the formation of ankylosis.

Changing the appearance of the joint

Noticeable changes appear in later stages. Thus, the axis of the affected limb is bent, and the joint region itself is disfigured - it grows in size, the shape changes ugly.

All this testifies to the irreversible destruction of the joint, within which a new tissue was formed, with no specific structure.

If this disease-causing process occurs in the knee, then the load on the ankle and metatarsophalangeal joints will increase, which will damage them over time.

If the externally deformed part of the body is also swollen or swollen, it means inflammation of the synovial membrane, due to which synovial fluid accumulates in large amounts in the joint bag, causing severe pain.

Causes of osteoarthritis

The pathology can occur in a single joint and spread to several. This disease occurs less often at a young age - there is still enough vitality for the body to heal itself.

However, for all age groups, the causes of occurrence in their direction of exposure are:

• internal - some diseases, bad habits, unbalanced diet, etc. ;
• external, - injuries, professional factor.

Internal causes are factors that bring about a negative change in the joint in the form of joint inflammation. There are inflammations of various origins:

• infectious (E. coli and Koch's bacillus, virus, chlamydia, staphylococci, Treponema pallidum, etc. );
• rheumatism;
• purulent arthritis;
• autoimmune nature;
• drop;
• psoriasis.

In addition, causes of internal exposure include congenital or acquired disorders of cartilage structure and malnutrition, which may be associated with:

• genetic flaws and mutations;
• intrauterine developmental anomalies, including perinatal trauma;
• advanced age;
• osteoporosis, that is, "washing" of the constituent elements of bone tissue;
• hormonal disturbances and overload, including menopause;
• violations of normal metabolism;
• nutritional deficiencies of vitamins and minerals;
• diseases that cause muscle weakness;
• prolonged internal intoxication.

The exacerbation of many diseases of the musculoskeletal skeleton also leads to cartilage degeneration.

External causes of the development of the disease are factors that damage the joint, such as:

• frequent hypothermia;
• displacements;
• strong blows;
• fractures;
• meniscus injury;
• strong physical activity (lifting weights, for example);
• professional sports;
• joint surgery.

degrees of arthrosis

According to the clinical manifestations and the process of disease progression, four stages of arthrosis are distinguished:

1. 1st degree arthrosis, this is the initial stage of arthrosis, which is characterized by hidden symptoms in the form of negative changes in the composition of synovial fluid and weakening of muscle fibers, if pain appears, it is only during physical exertion;
2. 2nd degree arthrosis - it is already a feeling of pain due to the collapse of the bone joint and the formation of osteophytes, reflex neurotrophic regulation is disturbed and an audible noise appears;
3. 3rd degree arthrosis is characterized by significant degenerative changes in the joint, its visible deformation with a bending of the limb axis, the ligaments are shortened, and the joint becomes pathologically mobile;
4. 4th degree osteoarthritis is complete ankylosis, complete contracture and severe pain even at rest.

All four stages proceed unevenly: during the pathological period, acute exacerbations and moments of remission are possible.

Osteoarthritis treatment

It is clinically proven that treatment and prevention in the form of eliminating the triggering factors of hyaline cartilage damage, while not relieving the disease at an early stage, stop its development and restore joint functionality.

Basically, disease of minor and moderate severity is treated with conservative methods. In case of severe destruction of the cartilaginous surface, which led to the destruction of the bones, surgical arthroplasty is indicated.

In this case, the main principles in the treatment are:

• an integrated approach that involves the use of various therapeutic methods;
• propositivity, that is, the concentration of efforts in the elimination of factors and consequences that cause diseases.

Treatment with folk remedies

Being treated comprehensively but at home, you can also turn to healing recipes from traditional healers, offering effective treatment of health problems through herbs and bee products.

From the use of plants:

• bay leaf in the form of decoctions, vodka tinctures and specially prepared oils, used externally, directly on the area of inflammation;
• the treatment of osteoarthritis with honey has established itself as a reliable local drug that relieves inflammation in the form of friction and nourishes the skin, muscles and cartilage;
• cabbage leaf, - better than white cabbage, - mash it up a little and roll it around a sore spot, warm it with a woolen cloth on top and keep it overnight;
• aloe juice in the form of compresses and rubbing on the skin;

Treatment of arthrosis of the knee joint with burdock also helps: the sheet is bandaged to the sore spot, which is isolated all night.

It's important to know! With phytotherapy, it is necessary, to maximize the effect, to forget about bad habits and take care of proper nutrition.

Osteoarthritis Medicines

Drug treatment related to the classical method of therapy is divided, depending on the pharmaceutical form used, into drugs:

• external use, in the form of ointment for arthrosis, rubbing, lotions;
• injections;
• arthrosis pills;
• capsules.

ointments

The pharmaceutical industry produces medical ointments based on highly active natural ingredients:

• heparin ointment.

A remedy containing 1% diclofenac helps well: the gel is applied to the skin.

injections

Injections have proven themselves very well in treating not only intravenously and intramuscularly, but also directly into the affected area, for example with non-steroidal drugs.

Thus, intra-articular injections are injected into the damaged joint tissues:

• glucocorticoids, which improve the nutrition of cartilage tissue, relieve inflammation and increase elasticity;
• chondroprotectors and intra-articular fluid analogues;
• hyaluronic acid as a lubricant and analgesic.

Preparations in the form of tablets and capsules

A special group in drug therapy are the so-called chondroprotectors for arthrosis, containing the structural elements of hyaline cartilage and thus restoring it.

These medications are available in the form of tablets and capsules intended to be taken orally through the gastrointestinal (oral) tract.

In addition, patients are given NSAIDs - anti-inflammatory drugs for arthrosis of the non-steroidal group, stopping acute pain and relieving exacerbations.

Analgesics are also used in the blocking form of novocaine.

In addition, complex vitamins are prescribed for osteoarthritis.

From natural preparations of local action, medical bile is recommended, applied in the form of compresses to the skin.

Exercises for Osteoarthritis

Special exercises and corrective gymnastics (LFK) have proved to be excellent, whose complex gives physical activity to the unhealthy part of the body in a gentle and dosed way.

Dr. Bubnovsky and Evdokimenko developed their own sets of therapeutic exercises.

It's important to know! Physical exercises help to restore health very effectively, but only if you resort to them early in the development of the disease!

osteoarthritis massage

A very beneficial effect in medical treatment and massage, which improves microcirculation and nutrition of deep tissues.

arthritis diet

In this condition, it is important to adhere to adequate and rational nutrition to improve the patient's condition a little. Recommended abstinence from excesses, exclusion of animal fats and fried foods.

It's important to know! Also, in the fight for healthy cartilage, it is necessary to use physical therapy in the form of magnetic therapy, electrophoresis, paraffin and therapeutic mud wraps.

Which doctor treats arthritis

First of all, with complaints of pain in the bones joints, you should go to the therapist. It is he who, summarizing the patient's history and asking in detail, will give a referral to the necessary narrow specialist.

It can be, depending on the cause of the disease and its type, doctors with profiles such as:

• orthopedist;
• traumatologist;
• surgeon;
• rheumatologist.