Osteoarthritis of the knee joint: Causes, symptoms, prevention and treatment

How do you feel when you meet an old man with a cane on the street?Certainly sympathy, and also confidence that you will definitely not be like that!

Not one who is young and vigorous imagines old age with sickness and lameness;Instead, imagine a picture of a smiling young pensioner who moves around the world with healthy legs and a snow-white smile, like in a photo in a foreign magazine.

But disease is a dangerous thing.And especially joint diseases.Creeping unnoticed, various diseases little by little destroy and eliminate joints, showing themselves one fine morning in pain and inability to move normally.

Among all joint pathologies, based on the number of requests for medical help, the main one is arthrosis of the knee joint (gonarthrosis, osteoarthritis of the knee joint).According to statistics, every fifth inhabitant of the planet over the age of 40 suffers from gonarthrosis, and this disease "likes" women more than men.

What is arthrosis of the knee joint and is it possible to avoid it?Let's start with the definition of the disease.

Arthrosis of the knee joint (gonarthrosis, osteoarthritis of the knee joint) is a degenerative - dystrophic change in the articular cartilage.

It can be primary or secondary, that is, it occurs against the background of another disease.

Causes of arthrosis of the knee joint

Most often, gonarthrosis occurs because:

• Traumatic injury of the knee joint.
• Excess body weight.
• Increased physical activity, including when playing professional sports.
• Existing diseases (usually arthritis of various etiologies).
• Weak ligamentous apparatus.
• Metabolic disorders.

How does arthrosis develop?

Osteoarthritis of the knee joint is divided into grades 1, 2 and 3. Let's take a closer look at the distinctive features.

Symptoms of Stage 1 Arthrosis of the Knee Joint

Gonarthrosis first manifests itself with pain that occurs when walking up stairs.A person feels discomfort in the knee joint, pain that makes it difficult to go down the stairs.In other situations, pain almost does not arise and therefore the patient happily forgets about it or takes some kind of therapeutic measures on his own, completely trusting the advice of friends who "have it too."

It is the frequency of occurrence of pain that postpones a visit to the clinic until later, which leads to the transition of the disease to a more serious level, to -2.

How does stage 2 disease manifest?

Stage 2 gonarthrosis is characterized not only by severe pain, but also by limited mobility in 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 a characteristic crunching sound is heard in the joint when moving.

On visual examination, swelling of the joint deformation and slight joint swelling are observed.

It is a patient with stage 2 gonarthrosis who is a patient in the clinic, unable to cope with the incredible pain on his own and, having limited mobility, they turn to the doctor.

Is grade 3 arthrosis synonymous with disability?

Stage 3 arthrosis of the knee joint is characterized by persistent severe pain in the joint and loss of mobility.X-ray examination showed dystrophic changes in the cartilage tissue and severe deformation of the joints.What is called deforming arthrosis develops.

Arthritis pain tends to increase at night and is most intense in the morning.

Patients with degree 3 arthrosis can only walk with the help of crutches, remember our old man from the introduction?This is really him.

Treatment tactics for arthrosis of the knee joint

The treatment process for arthrosis is a long process and requires perseverance and patience from the patient.The basic principles of gonarthrosis treatment can be called:

• Systematic.
• An integrated approach.

Treatment of arthrosis should be carried out under the guidance of a doctor.It is the person who should give you recommendations on how and how to treat this disease, which must be followed carefully.You can also add traditional methods to your medical prescription, but only after the attending physician approves them.

The beginning of treatment for gonarthrosis, like other diseases, begins with the organization of a gentle regimen.With gonarthrosis, a gentle regimen is created for diseased joints.Prolonged physical activity and walking are excluded as much as possible.In your diet, you should limit the use of salt, sweets, and fatty foods, and include more fruits and vegetables rich in vitamins in your diet.

Drug treatment

1. To relieve pain, drugs from the analgesic and antispasmodic groups are prescribed.

2. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are very popular.Drugs in this group are not prescribed for long courses due to many side effects.Therefore, tablets or long injections and injections are more often used for treatment.NSAIDs alleviate the patient's condition, but do not eliminate the cause of gonarthrosis.This mission has been entrusted by medical science to another group of drugs - chondroprotectors.
3. The effect of chondroprotective drugs is based on restoring the normal production of synovial fluid and damaged cartilage tissue.These drugs are very effective in the treatment of grade 1 and 2 gonarthrosis.

Unfortunately, in stage 3 of the disease, treatment with chondroprotectors has no effect.

4. Therapeutic ointment, gel, cream.They are used topically, used for rubbing and compressing.Pharmacy chains offer a variety of drugs from this group;When buying, you should be guided not by the advertising popularity of certain ointments, but by the recommendations of experts.

5. In the case of hunting this disease, not only exercise, but also massage and physiotherapy are excluded.They should not be used in the acute period due to increased pain.Once the pain subsides, massage, exercise therapy, and physiotherapy methods must be added to the drug treatment.The following procedures have proven themselves well for the treatment of gonarthrosis:
• Lasers.
• Smt.
• Electrophoresis.
• Magnetotherapy.
• Ozokerite.

Traditional medicine and gonarthrosis

In folk medicine, there are a large number of different recipes for the treatment of arthrosis of the knee joint.

Medicinal herbal decoctions:

• lingonberries,
• cranberries,
• thyme,
• corn silk,
• golden mustache

Taken orally and used for compresses.There is also a method of using alcohol tincture for rubbing:

• bitter pepper tincture,
• Fly Agaric Tincture,
• Woodlice Tincture.

Compresses with medical bile, apple cider vinegar, cabbage and honey compresses are also used in folk medicine.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 devotees to use this recipe.

Important!Whatever folk remedy you choose, be sure to discuss the feasibility of using it with your doctor!

How to Prevent the Development of Gonarthrosis - Preventive Measures

Preventing the occurrence of arthrosis of the knee joint is not difficult if you think about it from a young age.How are prevention rules formed?Very easy.Read the causes of the disease and do everything to avoid it, namely:

1. Do not eat too much, adhere to a soft diet and proper nutritional principles.
2. We distribute physical activity wisely.
3. Don't be too cold.
4. Treat any illness on time.
5. Avoid injury.
6. Do gymnastics.
7. Contact an expert on time.

At first glance, the proposal is quite simple.And if you follow them, Gonarthrosis will not threaten you.And you don't have to worry about getting old - after all, at the beginning of the article we agreed to travel around the world on our own feet!