Osteoarthritis of the joints (osteoarthritis) is a pathological dystrophic process in which various layers and tissues are slowly destroyed. Everyone should have a clear understanding of how osteoarthritis is treated, because neither adults, nor children, nor the elderly are insured against the disease. If there is a suspicion of the development of osteoarthritis, it is necessary to know in detail what it is and how to cope with different types.
Depending on the location of the pathological process and the severity of the damage, there are several types of diseases in medicine, which are also associated with the treatment of osteoarthritis. Naturally, a person facing such a diagnosis for the first time should try to learn as much as possible what osteoarthritis is. Consider the most commonly diagnosed variants of the disease.
Views
Pathology can be of the following types:
- Typical osteoarthritis affects all segments of the population and is a fairly common disease. The diagnosis is made at the age of 40-60. Osteoarthritis of the ankle and foot is very common.
- Patellofemoral arthrosis appears below the patella. The causes of this type of osteoarthritis are the defeat of the patellofemoral joint.
- Hemarthrosis is bleeding into a cavity. Often it is osteoarthritis of the lower extremities affecting the knee.
- Polyarthritis is a group of dystrophic lesions and is mainly diagnosed in the elderly. This species is considered an independent disease. Therapy should be selected by the attending physician, taking into account the individual characteristics of the patient.
- Rheumatic pathology, or rheumatoid arthrosis, is caused by improper metabolism.
Osteoarthritis
The best are grade 1 osteoarthritis and grade 2 osteoarthritis. Initially, there is a decrease in the elasticity of cartilage, which is accompanied by softening and loosening of the surface layers. As the pathological process progresses, the condition worsens and the surface becomes very thin, splitting into fibers, which leads to cracks.
Pathological changes in the joint surface in osteoarthritis
When grade 3 osteoarthritis is diagnosed, the patient already has erosive damage to the cartilage with fairly deep cracks, but the subchondral bone and deep parts are not damaged.
When osteoarthritis is diagnosed, treatment will be medication. It is based on taking non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (within 10 days of the course). Treatment of osteoarthritis in the second stage may require the administration of hormonal drugs injected into the affected joint. It is also possible to treat with compresses and prescriptions of traditional medicine, but only in combination with drugs. Only a doctor will explain in more detail how to treat osteoarthritis, and you should be informed about the decision to combine traditional and non-traditional medicine.
Patellofemoral
If a patient is diagnosed with patellofemoral osteoarthritis of the knee joint, it is important to know how to treat it and what happens at each stage of the pathological process.
With grade 1 osteoarthritis, they talk about daily fatigue or situations where the legs are severely overworked or overworked. However, secondary osteoarthritis is diagnosed when there are unpleasant symptoms (pain, fatigue, heaviness in the knee) or after an injury. If you do not know how to treat or do it prematurely, cartilage tissue dystrophy will begin.
Patellofemoral arthrosis does not have its own therapy regimen. Depending on the severity of the symptoms, doctors decide on the need for fixation with a knee pad or orthosis, and osteoarthritis can also be treated by reducing physical stress and taking analgesics.
Once you know what osteoarthritis is and how to deal with it, you can start taking medication on time, which will help maintain joint mobility and your overall health.
Hemarthrosis
A characteristic feature of this type of joint lesion, such as hemarthrosis, is the flow of blood into the joint cavity. This condition is often diagnosed in people prone to hemophilia. In grade 1 osteoarthritis, there are virtually no visible or noticeable changes, and the structures and tissues of the joint are not damaged. In grade 2 osteoarthritis, soft tissues are damaged (meniscus and ligaments, joint capsule).
The procedure of bleeding from the cavity with hemarthrosis
Hemarthrosis is treated with drugs in several stages:
- First of all, the cleaning of the articular cavity from leaking blood is carried out with a puncture;
- Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are then injected into the joint;
- And as a result, they determine the course of intake of synthetic substances that help restore the joint.
The therapeutic regimen directly depends on the severity of the symptoms of osteoarthritis and the severity of the disease.
Polyarthritis
Before talking about treatment methods, you need to understand what are the symptoms of osteoarthritis for this type.
Polyarthritis is characterized by:
- multiple lesions of various joints;
- restriction of physical activity;
- pain when shaking fingers;
- swelling of damaged joints;
- appearance of nodules on the thickening of the bones;
- narrowing of the joint space.
Polyarthritis is dangerous because it affects several joints at once, so it requires the right approach to treatment and the right choice of medication.
Now for more information on how to treat this type of osteoarthritis. First of all, therapy is aimed at restoring physical activity. When talking about how to treat osteoarthritis with medication, you should remember the physical procedures that are highly effective in such a lesion. Here it can look like a treatment with heat or water. The same goes for balneotherapy.
If the patient has osteoarthritis of the joints, the doctor will definitely prescribe non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Intrauterine glucocorticoids and chondroprotective injections also help well. Eliminate pain and discomfort, various ointments, compresses, rubs.
It is forbidden to choose a drug for osteoarthritis from traditional medical prescriptions, but it should be agreed with the attending physician that this will avoid complications. If the described methods are not effective, the doctor will consider the possibility of solving the problem surgically.
In addition to knowing how to treat osteoarthritis, it is important to remember that proper prevention of osteoarthritis, which we will talk about later.
Degrees
Osteoarthritis, hemarthrosis, polyarthritis and patellofemoral arthrosis occur in three stages. The symptoms and treatment of osteoarthritis will be different in each clinical situation, so there is no universal therapeutic regimen.
There are 3 degrees of pathology:
- Grade 1 osteoarthritis - characterized by narrowing of the cavity and the absence of osteophytes;
- Grade 2 osteoarthritis - a slight narrowing of the cavity is accompanied by the formation of osteophytes;
- Grade 3 osteoarthritis - significant narrowing of the joint space, numerous osteophytes and bone deformities.
Treatment of osteoarthritis at each stage should be carried out by a qualified specialist, otherwise the therapy will not give the desired results and the process will worsen.
Folk remedies
When it comes to folk remedies for the treatment of the disease, here you will find many decent, easily applied and effective recipes. Let's look at some of them.
Fermented dairy products and chalk
To eat, you need to find the peeled chalk and turn it into small crumbs. The ideal choice would be material written on blackboards. Keep in mind that if you buy chalk offered in a building materials store, it may contain chemical components that can do more harm.
The resulting mass should be poured with any fermented milk product and mixed thoroughly until a homogeneous mass is obtained. Your work should be carefully placed on the affected area, wrapped in cling film and fixed with a bandage. Leave the mixture overnight and wash with warm water and soap in the morning. As a result, the pain disappears and blood circulation improves.
Oatmeal
A very economical and simple, but effective recipe. Take 100 grams of oatmeal and pour boiling water over it. Then put the mass on a low heat and cook for five minutes. Over time, a mixture applied to the wound site will be obtained. It is recommended to leave the compress overnight. Please note that oatmeal should only be used freshly prepared.
Fern leaves
If you have such a plant at home, you can donate a few leaves for your health. Otherwise, it is collected in the woods in the summer, then applied to the affected area, wrapped in a bandage and left overnight. The effect will not wait long.
Propolis
Bee products are known in folk medicine for their good healing properties associated with many diseases. You should take propolis and dissolve it in a water bath (it should be enough to treat the damaged area). When it is liquid, you need to add corn or sunflower oil, wait for the mixture to cool, apply on the skin and leave overnight. In the morning the pain and swelling will disappear.
Prophylaxis
If you set yourself a goal and try to find a drug that will prevent osteoarthritis, you will not be crowned successfully because you have not tried. Pathology cannot be accurately predicted, but it is quite possible to reduce the risk of osteoarthritis.
You can do the following to prevent the destruction of the joints:
- Avoid injuries and mechanical damage as much as possible;
- Try to treat all diseases related to joints in a timely manner;
- Treat all infectious and viral diseases;
- Do not overload the joints;
- Live an active lifestyle;
- Eat right;
- Exercise every day.
Now you know everything about the symptoms and treatment of the most common type of osteoarthritis, and if you follow these simple recommendations, the disease will not feel for a long time, and if you are lucky, it will never show itself at all.