The disease, which is discussed in this article, is often found in women, and not necessarily the elderly. Osteoarthritis of the knee joint, or gonarthrosis, can develop at a young age due to trauma, significant physical exertion, autoimmune and infectious diseases, metabolic processes, etc. Let us consider in more detail what are the symptoms of arthrosis of the knee joint and effective methods of treating this pathology.
Primary signs and basic symptoms of deforming arthrosis of the knee joint
In arthrosis of the knee joint, the following pathological processes of the cartilage and bone tissue are observed, depending on the stage of the lesion:
- At the initial stage, there are no obvious violations of the joint tissues, the changes concern only the functions of the synovial membrane and the composition of the synovial fluid that feeds cartilage and meniscus. In this case, the knee joint ceases to withstand the usual loads, and the inflammatory process begins. There is also a gradual weakening of the muscular tissue around the knee joint.
- Progression of the process leads to the beginning of destruction of the cartilage and menisci, to which the bone tissue reacts by the formation of marginal growths. There is a violation of muscle functions due to violation of neurohumoral regulation.
- The severe stage of arthrosis of the knee is expressed in a significant deformation of the bone tissue, which leads to a change in the axis of the leg, a significant restriction of motor activity, and trophic disruption of muscles and other tissues of the foot.
The initial clinical sign of knee arthrosis is a non-intensive pain in the knee that occurs after physical exertion and subsides after rest. Also, patients can complain about difficulties when climbing the stairs, pain in the knees at the first steps after a long sitting, a feeling of short-term tingling. Sometimes there is swelling of the knee due to the accumulation of fluid in the joint cavity. Very often patients ignore the first symptoms and do not go to the hospital.
In the future, in the absence of treatment, the signs of arthrosis of the knee joint become more pronounced:
- intense pain, which eventually does not subside even in a state of rest and arises from minor stresses on the joint;
- crunching in the knee during movements;
- deformation of the joint, visible to the naked eye;
- The inability to normally bend and unbend the leg in the knee;
- pronounced puffiness, sometimes - redness of the skin over the joint.
The most unfavorable outcome can be complete immobility or unnatural mobility of the joint, which leads to severe disruption of leg functions and disability.
Treatment of arthrosis of the knee joint
Therapy for this disease is determined by the stage of the pathological process and the severity of the symptoms. In order to prevent the progression of arthrosis, improve the nutrition of the joint, increase its activity, it is recommended:
- restriction of loads on knee joints;
- physiotherapy;
- physiotherapeutic methods (laser therapy, electrophoresis, electrostimulation, etc.).
Good results are provided by sanatorium treatment with such types of procedures as:
- vortex, coniferous, radon baths ;
- mud applications;
- saunas.
From medicines the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, chondroprotectors, corticosteroids, hyaluronic acid preparations is shown.
With excessive body weight for the treatment of arthrosis of the knee joint and reduction in the severity of symptoms, an important role is played by proper nutrition, aimed at reducing weight, and, consequently, the load on the knees.
In the case of a severe stage of the disease, the only effective method is endoprosthetics - joint replacement.
It should be noted that the existing numerous folk remedies for the treatment of arthrosis of the knee joint help alleviate the symptoms, but can not be the main therapeutic method - they can only be used as a supplement to the doctor's prescribed treatment.