Osteoarthritis of the hip, shoulder, knee and ankle joints is a disease that occurs as a result of wear and tear of cartilage tissue, as well as bone deformation.In this case, the patient experiences pain of varying intensity (depending on the form of the disease).As a result, the disease leads to problems with motor functions, partial or complete immobilization and disability.It is important to determine whether osteoarthritis can be cured without surgery.
Definition of a lesion
Knee joint disease is most common in women;can occur for many reasons.Older people suffer from arthrosis of the knee joint more often than others.
If osteoarthritis treatment is not started in time, the joint-forming bones will be exposed and damaged.In this case, it will be impossible to do without surgical intervention.When the first unpleasant symptoms appear, it is important to seek help from a doctor as soon as possible.It will not be able to completely eliminate arthrosis, but it will help to slow down the process of deformation of the knee joint and stop the degeneration.Early identification of the lesion and properly formulated treatment will help to avoid negative consequences and an early state of disability.
What are the most common causes of knee osteoarthritis and can the disease be cured?The main reasons include:
- Flat feet.
- Diseases of the veins.
- Diabetes and other lesions associated with metabolic disorders.In this case, it will be difficult to get rid of arthrosis, since not all drugs and physical procedures are allowed to be used.
- Overweight - people with weight problems suffer from osteoarthritis much more often than people of normal body weight.
- Adolescence - at this time, a person's metabolism and hormonal levels change, leading to a degenerative process.
- Carrying a child - at this time, a woman gains weight, as a result of which the load on the knee part increases significantly.Hormonal levels are disturbed, which contributes to the appearance of arthrosis of the knees.
- Changes in the body associated with the patient's age.
- Suffering certain injuries.About 30 percent of knee osteoarthritis occurs due to injury.The damage leads to a change in the normal structure of the tissue, which provokes the process of destruction.
- Regular physical activity of the lower legs to which the body has not adapted.
- The beginning of the inflammatory process in the body.
- Hereditary predisposition.
- The appearance of cramps in the muscle tissues of the thigh.
The disease can be cured only if you contact a treating specialist.In this case, it is forbidden to start any treatment yourself.Only a specialist will be able to prescribe effective therapy, which will include physiotherapy and medication.
Preventive measures
It is important to remember preventive measures even before the appearance of the main disease.Arthritis can be divided into two types.The first occurs due to a violation of the metabolic process in the body, as well as the age characteristics of the patient.
The second type occurs as a result of injury or infection.To prevent the second type of arthrosis, it is important to avoid possible injuries, bruises and fractures.This applies to a greater extent to those who are involved in any sport or dance.For such people, such an illness often becomes professional and prevents them from doing what they love.This also applies to children who are very active and behave carelessly on the street;It is important for them to behave carefully so as not to injure themselves dangerously.
The main factor that will help to avoid arthrosis of the deformable knee joint is mobility.The best way to prevent osteoarthritis is moderate exercise.This is especially important for people whose work involves mostly sedentary work.It is important to remember that in this case we are talking about a moderate load on various joints.
The main stages of the disease
Osteoarthritis can be divided into four different stages according to its development.The more advanced the stage, the more difficult the process of treatment and relief of symptoms will be:
- at the first stage, the symptoms are mild, but the process of tissue destruction is already spreading rapidly;
- the destruction of the cartilage continues, which leads to a decrease in the mobility of the leg in the area of the joint and is accompanied by severe pain;
- in this case, the cartilaginous tissue thins, the bones forming the joints begin to actively grow and become damaged;
- in the last stage of the development of the disease, the cartilage is almost completely destroyed, the deformation of the bone leads to a change in the axis of the diseased limb, while the joint ceases to cope with the pressure exerted on it, and the leg in the knee completely loses mobility.
Osteoarthritis of the knee joint of the first degree can be diagnosed by short-lasting pain that occurs when a person walks.There is no noticeable deformity that can be detected on examination, and the radiograph also does not give the necessary amount of information about the state of the joints to make an accurate diagnosis.
If the disease is detected in time and proper treatment is started, the process of destruction of the cartilage tissue can be completely stopped and even the affected areas can be restored.
Is it possible to cure arthrosis of the 2nd degree?The treatment of stage 2 of the development of arthrosis is aimed at eliminating the unpleasant symptoms and slowing down the degenerative-dystrophic process.In this case, it is not always possible to restore the tissue, but you can save what remains intact.
Is it possible to cure arthrosis of the 3rd degree?When arthrosis reaches the third stage of development, attempts to slow down the destructive process and bone damage most often do not lead to results, the disease quickly acquires the fourth stage of development (some experts therefore distinguish only three stages of development of this disease).
In case of serious changes in the structure of the joint, the use of a prosthesis is necessary;this method of surgical correction is called endoprosthetics.
In some cases, surgical intervention is also used at stage 2 of gonarthrosis.In this case, minimally invasive arthroscopic surgery is performed, where dead tissue and pieces of damaged cartilage are removed through a small incision.With the help of this operation, the range of motion increases, the symptoms of pain and inflammation disappear.But we must remember that the treatment does not end there.This operation will help alleviate the unpleasant symptoms of the disease for several years.
Conducting treatment
Is it possible to cure arthrosis of the knee joint?The treatment of any disease can be carried out in three main directions:
- etiotropic - elimination of the root causes of the lesion;
- symptomatic – relief of the main symptoms;
- pathogenetic - intervention in the process of disease progression.
In order to carry out effective treatment or at least to stop the development of arthrosis, it is important:
- activate the blood supply process and improve the condition of the tissues;
- compensates for the lack or excess of enzymes in the body;
- give the body everything it needs to reproduce cartilage tissue;
- restoration of the volume and composition of the synovial fluid.
Many physiotherapeutic procedures and ointments for local application lead to improvement of tissue nutrition and normalization of their blood supply.During electrophoresis, tissues can be saturated with special enzymes.But the main way to treat such a disease is to take chondroprotectors.Recently, hyaluronic acid injections are mainly used to treat osteoarthritis.Biological treatment methods are considered more aggressive.
Use of chondroprotectors
Is it possible to completely cure arthrosis?For comprehensive treatment, chondroprotectors are suitable - drugs that include natural components of cartilage tissue or their synthetic analogues, which lead to the synthesis of certain components or inhibit their degradation.
Chondroprotectors can be found in the following forms:
- Tablets, capsules and powders for oral administration;
- solutions for intramuscular injections;
- special ointments for external use.
Medicines for external use should be used as an additional treatment in complex therapy.
Is it possible to cure deforming arthrosis?First you need to consider the features of treatment with chondroprotectors:
- many chondroprotectors help to get rid of severe pain and inflammation, but this is not the main benefit of taking them;for symptomatic therapy, it is best to use more affordable NSAIDs;
- therapeutic measures have a particular effect at stages 1 and 2 of the development of the disease, when the cartilage has not yet been destroyed to a final state;
- during treatment it is important to take a long, systematic course of treatment;after each course you must take a break;one course includes 6 months, so the treatment lasts for years.
If the patient is prone to the appearance of arthrosis of the knees, he should start taking chondroprotectors for preventive purposes in advance, before the first signs of the disease appear.Chondroprotectors cannot be called a panacea, as they protect the cartilage and do not restore its condition.Osteoarthritis is much easier to prevent than to start treatment afterwards.
The main difficulty of treatment
Is it possible to cure arthrosis forever?The main difficulty in treatment is that, to this day, no drugs have been developed that could permanently and completely eliminate arthrosis.But it is important to remember that there are quite effective complex methods of treatment that help get rid of pain and slow down the progression of the disease.
Osteoarthritis of the hip joint
Osteoarthritis of the hip joint is a degenerative-dystrophic process in which the cartilaginous structures covering the surface of the head of the femur, as well as the acetabulum, are damaged.In order to keep the cartilage in good condition, it is important to determine whether hip osteoarthritis can be cured.
Drug treatment
There are a large number of ways to treat this disease.Most often, the treating specialist prescribes a whole complex that includes many therapeutic measures.
Is it possible to cure arthrosis of the hip joint?With arthrosis of the 1st and 2nd degree, it is allowed to use drugs for treatment.The most effective drugs in this case are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, vasodilators that improve blood supply to the joints, relax muscles and help eliminate spasms.
Chondroprotectors are also used to help preserve cartilage tissue.In the first and second stages of development of the lesion, experts allow the use of local agents: patches, applications, ointments and gels - they will stimulate normal blood circulation.
It is important to remember that without effective and timely treatment, arthrosis of the hip joint can provoke ankylosis.Ankylosis is a complete fusion of the femur and pelvis.In this case, the leg completely loses its mobility in the joint.
Osteoarthritis of the ankle joint
Can arthrosis of the ankle joint be cured?Before treating ankle arthrosis, it is important to make an accurate diagnosis.Most often, a doctor can establish an accurate diagnosis either by examining the patient's foot or by taking an X-ray.
Depending on the stage of development of the disease, the specialist will choose the most suitable treatment.Even before visiting a specialist, the patient should significantly reduce the load on the diseased joint, avoid hypothermia, as well as overloading.The doctor prescribes complex treatment for the patient: physiotherapy, balneotherapy, painkillers and drugs to stimulate blood circulation.
Also, ankle therapy can be done on an outpatient basis, in a hospital with the prescription of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.Difficulties in treatment may arise if the patient is obese.For such a patient, it is important to eat properly not only during the treatment itself, but also after it.
Gymnastic exercises
Gymnastics for ankle arthrosis is allowed only after the main symptoms of the disease have completely passed.Together with the treating specialist, a complex of exercises and loads on the foot should be drawn up.
All gymnastic exercises during arthrosis must load the ligaments and muscles in the joint without overloading the joints themselves, otherwise it can be very dangerous.
Is it possible to cure arthrosis of the joint?The course of gymnastics in the treatment of arthrosis will not require the patient to spend money, buy drugs or expensive devices, but the patient will have to be patient and hardworking to complete the course accurately.
Shoulder problems
Some injuries can lead to an inflammatory or degenerative process in the joints.The most common causes of shoulder arthrosis are:
- heavy physical load on the shoulder joint during work, which leads to active wear of its components;
- sustaining a shoulder injury;
- shoulder dysplasia;
- changes in hormone production;
- problems with blood supply to joint tissues, which leads to the appearance of vascular pathologies;
- natural wear and tear of cartilage, characteristic of the elderly.
What is common in this case is the inflammatory process accompanied by painful symptoms.The causes of such damage are varied;they can be related to injury, infection, or disruption of certain systems in the body.
Most often, the onset of arthritis requires an additional external impact: stress, hypothermia, infection of organs, infection through an open wound, immune response to infection.
When determining the disease, the doctor pays attention to the degree of the disease, the main complaints of the patient and the results of a number of tests.The main diagnostic measure is a biochemical blood test, which helps to confirm the presence of inflammation and in some cases to determine its nature.
Another important examination is the X-ray examination, which helps to determine the location of the deformation of the joint at an early stage of its appearance.
Is it possible to cure arthrosis of the shoulder joint?In the presence of arthrosis of the first two degrees, exclusively conservative treatment is used.And only in the case of a complex form of the disease, surgery is prescribed.
Main methods of conservative treatment:
- taking medication;
- treatment with traditional methods;
- physiotherapy measures;
- sanatorium-resort treatment;
- massages;
- acupuncture;
- physical therapy;
- special diet.
Before starting the therapy, it is important to ensure complete rest of the damaged joint, which is much easier if the arthrosis is widespread in the shoulder area.The easiest treatment is considered the first stage of the disease, when changes in the scar have not yet occurred and the tissue has still retained its regenerative ability.
But in the presence of this form of damage, unpleasant sensations, as a rule, do not manifest strongly, the pain is mild, so the patient seeks help from a doctor very late.In the future, after the end of treatment, the patient will also have to follow a sparing regimen.