Gonarthritis is a pathological process in the cartilage tissue of the knee joint, which leads to its deformity. This process is associated with high stress on the knees, wear and salt deposits.
Myths about knee disease
There are 3 most famous myths:
- "The diagnosis of gonarthritis is a privilege of people with increased physical activity and people with mostly sedentary work do not suffer from it. "In fact, excessive exercise really contributes to the deterioration of cartilage. During sedentary work, a static effect occurs on the knees, the blood supply is blocked. In addition, a sedentary lifestyle leads to weight gain.
- "The knee joint is incurable, the disease progresses daily. "This disease is indeed chronic, but with adequate timely treatment, cartilage deterioration can be prevented.
- "With arthritis, you need to move as little as possible and lie down more. "A patient with such pathology is assigned a special exercise, which strengthens the connecting device. Only a few sports are really contraindicated.
Gonarthritis is the destruction of articular cartilage in the knee joint and adjacent bone surfaces.
Manifestations of arthritis of the knee joint
The manifestations depend on the severity of the deformity. The more it is expressed, the more intense the symptoms.
Symptoms of gonarthritis:
- long asymptomatic period.
- discomfort in the knee area.
- pain syndrome;
- reduced mobility ·
- morning stiffness up to half an hour.
- the presence of crunching during active movement.
- change in gait.
Bilateral knee arthritis occurs when the joints of both knees are involved in the process. This is one of the most serious forms. It occurs in the elderly.
Right-sided knee arthritis occurs with excessive static or dynamic physical exercise in the right extremity. Most often in athletes.
Knee arthritis on the left side occurs in overweight people and in athletes with a load on the left leg.
The reasons for the development of gonarthritis
Knee joint disease is primary and secondary. Primary can occur in childhood and adolescence, which is associated with joint malformations, as well as in the elderly due to the natural aging process.
Secondary occurs due to injury or existing diseases. Main reasons:
- fractures, bruises, dislocations.
- overweight?
- the presence of an inflammatory process in the joint and the lack of adequate treatment.
- metabolic diseases, which are accompanied by the deposition of salts in the cartilage tissues.
- functions;
- vitamin D deficiency;
- hormonal disorders.
- I am lifting weights;
- some sports (running, hockey, football).
Who is at risk?
The risk group includes:
- professional athletes;
- obese people?
- patients who have suffered trauma or surgery;
- persons over 45 years of age;
- patients with varicose veins;
- those who had cases of arthritis in the family.
The risk group also includes women who wear shoes with high heels or a flat thin sole.
The exact causes of knee arthritis are unknown.
The degree of gonarthritis
Radiologically, this pathology is divided into 5 stages or degrees:
- Stage 0 - Absence of arthritis with X-rays.
- Stage 1 - the appearance of a small osteophyte.
- Stage 2 - the osteophyte has clear outlines, the joint space changes little.
- Stage 3 - narrowing of the joint space.
- Stage 4 - severe narrowing of the gap, hardening of the hypochondriac bone.
1 degree knee joint
The first degree is characterized by fatigue, limited mobility is expressed slightly and a jerk is heard. The pain occurs after waking up, sitting for a long time and after physical exercise.
At this stage there is still no deformation. X-ray shows narrowing of the joint space.
How to deal with knee arthritis?
For treatment, a special group of drugs is used - chondroprotectants. They contain chondroitin and glucosamine, which restore the structure of cartilage and increase elasticity. NSAIDs are used to relieve pain.
Primary gonarthritis is usually bilateral. Even with the development of a unilateral form of the disease, after a while the second leg is also involved in the pathological process.
The first symptoms of arthritis of the knee joints are mild and uncharacteristic
Treatment methods
In addition to medication in the remission phase, the following methods are used:
- physiotherapy;
- massage?
- leech treatment;
- ultrasound report;
- radon and hydrogen sulfide baths;
- phonophoresis, electrophoresis.
- paraffin wrappers;
- use of therapeutic mud.
These methods are used regardless of the stage of disease development during the remission.
Is mud good for knee arthritis? One of the indications for mud therapy is diseases of the musculoskeletal system. The course of treatment is carried out twice a year. It includes from 10 to 15 procedures. The method can be used at home and dirt can be purchased at the pharmacy.
In the first instance, the patient is prescribed orthopedic shoes for the period of exacerbation to prevent the development of the deformity process. Women are advised to wear shoes with a thick sole of at least 1 cm, heel 5 cm. Normalize the diet - reduce the amount of salt, spicy foods. Meat jelly and jelly are included in the diet, as they are naturally chondroprotective.
Another method is weight correction. Reducing body weight to an optimal level for a given patient will reduce the load on the musculoskeletal system.
Knee joint grade 2
In the second degree, the pain intensifies, due to which the movement is significantly limited. Prolonged walking over long distances causes severe pain syndrome. The patient must rest to continue.
If treatment is not started (or is ineffective), arthritis of the knee joint progresses further.
The sting becomes loud, lameness appears. The affected joint is deformed. An inflammatory process occurs in the inner membrane of the joint.
On plain X-ray, a narrowing of the joint space, the appearance of thorns in the bone (osteophytes) is detected.
Treatment
Drug treatment is based on the use of NSAIDs. They have analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects. In addition, chondroprotectants are prescribed.
After the flare-up, physiotherapy exercises, massage are prescribed.
Nutrition suggestions:
- increase the amount of vegetables.
- include jelly and jelly meat in the diet.
- eat lean fish twice a week.
- prefer lean meat.
- eat bran bread.
It is also recommended to include in the diet bananas, nuts, eggs, spinach, legumes, liver, cabbage.
In addition to orthopedic shoes, special knees are prescribed.
From surgery, arthroscopic removal of deformable tissue is used. This method has a short-term effect of 2-3 years.
Knee arthritis, symptoms and grade 3 treatment
The most serious degree. Pain syndrome occurs during movement and calm. Knee mobility is as limited as possible and sometimes impossible. The deformation is intense. There is virtually no joint space on the roontogram.
The progressive destruction of cartilage and bone in the later stages leads to the development of malignant deformities of the knee, which increases in size.
Treatment
At this stage, in addition to NSAIDs, the patient is prescribed hormonal drugs. They are injected intravenously or into the joint. Severe pain syndrome is relieved with painkillers.
In stage 3, the operation is already displayed - endoprosthesis. Individual bone components or the entire joint are replaced. Contraindications: osteoporosis.
Complications of arthroplasty:
- marginal necrosis of the skin.
- rejection of intent.
- neurovascular disorders (paralysis, thrombosis).
In addition to endoprosthesis, there is joint replacement surgery - removal of deformed tissue and joint. Rarely used.
Osteotomy - excision of the bone ends to redistribute the load.
Physiotherapy
Knee joint exercises can relieve pain, strengthen the muscular apparatus and stimulate blood flow to them.
- Exercise 1. The patient lies on his back, lifts his straight leg up and holds it for at least 30 seconds after the second. Execution time should be reduced to 2 minutes.
- Exercise number 2 "Bicycle". Lying on your back imitate cycling on your feet. Repetitions 20 to 50 times.
- Exercise number 3. The patient lies on his stomach, alternately bending his legs, trying to reach the buttocks with the heel. Repetitions 20-50 times.
- Exercise number 4. It is done in the same way as the previous one, only statically. That is, the patient secures the limb in this position for 20-30 seconds.
Patients are advised to do stretching:
- Exercise 1. In an upright position, bend over, trying to reach the floor without bending your knees. Hold for 20 seconds, inhaling air through the nose, exhaling through the mouth.
- Exercise number 2. Sit on the floor with straight legs, try to wrap your arms around your legs, keeping your knees straight. Hold this position for up to 30 seconds. Perform 2-3 approaches. If the flexibility is not enough to reach the legs, they take the foot from the lower leg and try to pull the body as close as possible to the legs.
- Exercise number 3. The same position as when performing the previous one. The patient takes the foot from the foot, tries to straighten it and holds it as high as possible above the floor. If the exercise is difficult to do, then the foot is taken in the area of the lower leg. Hold the position for 10-30 seconds and then do it with the other foot.
Contraindications are the period of exacerbations and the presence of an acute inflammatory process. Patients are prohibited from running, walking a lot and squatting.
After performing physiotherapy exercises, it is useful to massage the muscles of the thigh, lower leg and the affected limb. The joint itself should not be affected, this will increase the inflammation.
Disease prevention
This disease is not inherited, so its development can be prevented. This requires:
- avoid injuries during exercise.
- do stretching and joint exercise, yoga.
- do you eat right?
- maintains a normal body weight.
- If you feel any discomfort in the knee area, consult a doctor.
- drink plenty of water.
- after 40 years, take condom chondroprotectants.
- do not overcool the joints.
- in the presence of early stages of the process and during the recession, do not increase physical activity, do not run.
- wear orthopedic shoes.
- use knee pads when doing sports.