Osteoarthritis is a painful change and deformity of the joints. Occurs when the articular cartilage is irreparably damaged. With conservative treatment or surgery, the symptoms of joint wear can be significantly reduced.
Overview of the disease
- The following joints are most commonly affected: knee, hips, shoulders, spine, fingers and toes, ankle joints;
- The most important signs: pain during exertion, pain at the beginning of exercise (at the beginning of physical activity), decreased mobility, deformity of the joints, period of irritation: swelling, redness, persistent pain;
- Diagnosis: physical examination, x-rays, computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI);
- Treatment: exercises, heat or cold procedures, pain relievers, intra-articular injections (hyaluronic acid, chondroitin sulfate), in the later stages - joint replacement (surgery);
- Caution: many osteoarthritis do not need to be treated for a long time, but physiotherapy and prevention of irritations should be performed sufficiently and, if necessary, the pain syndrome should be discontinued.
Methods of treating osteoarthritis
What helps with osteoarthritis or osteoarthritis? For most patients, this is the key question. Answer: There is still no treatment for osteoarthritis that can repair damaged cartilage.
Treatment of osteoarthritis can only alleviate the symptoms of the condition. In addition, treatment should prevent prolonged consumption of the joints.
Because the disease also leaves traces on the consumed joint over time, causing damage to the joint capsule, bones and muscles.
Treatment of osteoarthritis includes conservative and surgical procedures. The attending physician will select the most appropriate methods for each patient. Among other things, he assesses which joints are affected, how severe the general consumption is, and how severe the symptoms are.
Conservative treatment
Conservative osteoarthritis treatments are designed to relieve pain, fight inflammation, and improve muscle strength and coordination. A major role is assigned to physiotherapeutic procedures, which are performed both during an exacerbation and during periods of "calm" of symptoms.
Physiotherapy treatment
Various forms of physical therapy can alleviate the symptoms of osteoarthritis. This includes:
- Physiotherapy;
- Manual therapy;
- Thermotherapy (not in the acute phase);
- Cryotherapy (in the acute phase);
- Doing sports that are good for the joints, such as Nordic walking, swimming and cycling;
- Water therapy and baths;
- Electrotherapy;
- Ultrasound therapy;
- Orthopedic apparatus.
To treat chronic osteoarthritis pain, you can use heat from heat treatments, packs, baths or infrared light. On the other hand, severe swelling and discomfort are alleviated by cold treatments or compresses.
Physical therapy is also helpful in treating osteoarthritis because it strengthens muscles. Massage is also recommended: it relieves tension and improves blood circulation.
Joint movement during exercise
Regular exercise keeps your joints flexible. Therefore, people with osteoarthritis should include sports and exercise in their daily lives. Swimming is a good example. Train the joints without aggravating them too much. For the same reason, it is recommended to walk on the field and ride a bicycle.
Exercise can not only prevent but also slow down osteoarthritis and reduce symptoms.
Less suitable for osteoarthritis are sports with immediate, considerable joint stress, extreme movement or high risk of injury. These include, for example, tennis, ice skating, football, handball, karate and boxing.
Fixation of the joints
Bandages, elastic bandages, soft heels and crutches facilitate the functioning of the joints. Orthoses help in the same way. These are special support devices for joints. They prevent painful movements. However, orthoses are not very flexible and should only be worn for a short time to prevent joint stiffness.
If the person is overweight, try to lose weight. Thus, the joints will have less stress. Regular exercise and a healthy diet help in weight loss.
Medications for treating pain and inflammation
Painful joints with osteoarthritis can be rubbed with ointments, creams or gels for pain relief from the pharmacy.
Local anesthetics are used to relieve pain: they are injected into the joints or around the affected area.
Osteoarthritis (or osteoarthritis) is usually a non-inflammatory process. However, the inflammatory process often joins the tissue affected by osteoarthritis. Then talk about osteoarthritis or arthritis activation.
For treatment, a doctor often prescribes non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Sometimes glucocorticoids are injected into the joints against inflammation.
Some patients receive injections of hyaluronic acid or chondroitin sulfate inside the joint for osteoarthritis. These are glycosaminoglycans and natural constituents of synovial fluid. By injecting hyaluronic acid directly into the affected joint, mobility is restored.
Surgery
Surgery can correct problems in patients with osteoarthritis and stabilize the joints. It also relieves pain and prevents inflammation. In some cases, the damaged cartilage is replaced during surgery. Patients with osteoarthritis are able to move better after surgery.
Washing and treatment of joints
In osteoarthritis, the affected joint is sometimes washed with salt. This is most often done, for example, with the knee joint.
Bursal rinsing removes cartilage and damaged tissue fibers as well as other particles that float in the synovial fluid. In addition, the procedure should soothe any existing inflammation in the joints.
Reorganization implies a complex treatment of the wrist capsule. Rough cartilage surfaces in the joints are removed using instruments. It also removes areas or tissues that can impede joint mobility. Acute pain, at least temporarily, disappears as a result of treatment.
Joint treatment is performed as part of arthroscopy. Surgical instruments are inserted into the joints through very small incisions.
Stimulation of cartilage growth
During arthroscopy, small injections are made of the remaining cartilage surface for therapeutic purposes. This should stimulate cartilage cells to form replacement tissue. However, this new cartilage tissue has a different structure from the original cartilage and does not fully meet the requirements for the ankle.
During several years of illness, in some cases, cells can even be transplanted into the damaged joint.
Correction
Corrective osteotomy repositions the articular bones for a more even distribution of the load over the articular surfaces: part of the pressure is transferred from the osteoarthritis area to healthy cartilage and bone areas. In most cases, this type of osteoarthritis treatment also includes improving the function of the joint capsule and ligaments to restore joint mobility.
Joint replacement
If the pain cannot be relieved with any other treatment for osteoarthritis, joint replacement is possible. This means that the damaged joint (or parts of it) is replaced with an artificial one. Basically, surgery is performed in the case of osteoarthritis of the knee or hip joints.
Complex replacement is the last option
Strictly speaking, exhausted tissues and joint surfaces are surgically removed and replaced with metal, plastic, and ceramic (alloarthroplasty) prostheses. There are prostheses that replace only parts of the wrist and there are those that are used to replace the entire wrist. They are fixed either to the surface of the bone or with screws. With this method of treating osteoarthritis, it is possible, if necessary, to correct the position of the joint.
After a while, any prosthesis can be consumed. The time when this happens depends on various factors: age, gender, clinical picture of osteoarthritis, infections, type of joint and type of prosthesis.
A lightweight prosthesis needs to be replaced more often. The use of prosthesis can be detected in a timely manner with regular radiography.
Arthrodesis
Arthrodesis can help manage the pain of osteoarthritis. This is a strengthening of the affected wrist: it is more stable but also less mobile. Thus, arthrodesis is usually performed only on joints in which low mobility does not interfere with the patient's daily life. These include the joints of the toes and feet, and the small joints in the wrist.
Resection
In this form of osteoarthritis treatment, the damaged articular bodies are removed and reconstructed surgically without a prosthesis. However, resection arthroplasty is rarely used today.
This option can be considered for osteoarthritis of the thumb (rheumatoid arthritis), especially if conservative treatment of osteoarthritis has not been successful. One of the affected metacarpals is removed and replaced with body tendon tissue. The tendons of the long muscles of the thumb or the flexor tendons are often used. This form of therapy for rhizarthrosis is not considered a standard method.
Resectional arthroplasty is also performed for osteoarthritis of the big toe or osteoarthritis between the clavicle and the humerus.
Alternative treatment for osteoarthritis
What helps with osteoarthritis other than orthodox medical procedures? This question is of interest to many patients. They want to support treatment with "natural" methods, simple. Although many alternative methods have not been scientifically proven to be effective, they are a good relief for osteoarthritis in some patients. Homeopathy, herbal medicine, magnetic therapy and acupuncture are widely used to relieve the symptoms of arthritis.
Salts and homeopathy
In many cases, patients with osteoarthritis rely on these two alternatives: homeopathic salts and granules to relieve the symptoms of osteoarthritis. In addition, salt baths and compresses should also prevent osteoarthritis. Proponents say both treatments have no side effects and are therefore suitable for self-medication.
Experts recommend using minerals in combination with an ointment or gel cream. Homeopathic remedies for osteoarthritis should be discussed with an experienced therapist.
Plant substances
For centuries, the treatment of osteoarthritis has also been based on medicinal plants. These include African devil claws, nettle, comfrey, willow, dandelion, cayenne and rose hips. However, the symptoms of osteoarthritis improve if you use the herb for a long period of time. Your doctor or pharmacist will advise you on the correct use and dosage.
Magnetic field therapy
Treatment of osteoarthritis with magnetotherapy is designed to relieve pain, restore joints, and improve the patient's quality of life. The magnetic field is created either by a natural magnetic rock or by an electric coil.
Medical research has shown that magnetic therapy can be especially helpful for knee osteoarthritis. But patients with chronic complaints in multiple joints (polarity) should also benefit. No side effects have been observed with this alternative treatment for osteoarthritis.
X-ray therapy
X-ray osteoarthritis treatment is designed to prevent inflammation and improve blood circulation. Radiation should be performed at regular intervals and only very small doses of radiation are used.
X-rays are used, for example, in the treatment of rhizarthrosis and in the treatment of Heberden osteoarthritis.
Acupuncture
Stimulation of certain points on the skin with acupuncture to normalize again the disturbed processes in the body. Usually, the course of treatment requires several sessions.
The use of acupuncture for osteoarthritis is not widely accepted. However, some patients report that acupuncture can actually help relieve arthritis pain. Especially with the combined dressing on the knee structures, acupuncture can reduce chronic pain.
Osteoarthritis and nutrition
The link between arthritis and diet is often debated: can an unfavorable diet contribute to osteoarthritis? Do you need to change your diet for osteoarthritis?
In general, some foods can not be said to cause osteoarthritis. However, the type of diet can actually affect its course: what matters is how much we eat and how our meals are prepared.
Less calories
As you gain weight, the load on your joints increases and as a result they are consumed faster. Therefore, overweight people have a higher risk of osteoarthritis.
If osteoarthritis is already present, obesity contributes to combined consumption, especially in the knee.
Obesity has a major impact on joints. Excess pounds at a young age is especially critical.
Therefore, osteoarthritis diet should be adjusted by calorie counting if the person tends to be overweight. A healthy body weight eases the joints, can alleviate discomfort during illness, and slow the progression of changes.
Less animal fat
A proper diet for osteoarthritis means reducing the intake of meat and other animal products. Reason: In damaged joints, inflammation develops more easily in osteoarthritis. Some metabolic products mediate these inflammatory reactions in the body and consist of arachidonic acid (an omega-6 fatty acid). These are mostly animal products.
Therefore, the diet for osteoarthritis should limit the use of arachidonic acid. Instead, you should be more likely to consume foods with more omega-3 fatty acids because they inhibit inflammatory responses. Omega-3 fatty acids are found, for example, in canola and flaxseed oils and in oily fish such as herring, mackerel and salmon.
Therefore, the following guidelines apply to a diet suitable for arthritis:
- Reduce meat and egg consumption;
- Fish in the diet twice a week (eg salmon, mackerel, herring);
- Use vegetable oils like canola oil, flaxseed oil, sunflower oil or olive oil;
- Eat lots of fruits and vegetables;
- Cereals and legumes are preferred;
- Drink at least 1. 5 liters of water or sugar-free tea a day;
- Calcium from low-fat dairy products to strengthen bones
- Avoid caffeine, alcohol and nicotine.
Such a diet for osteoarthritis can not replace other therapeutic measures, but can complement them intelligently. This means that although diet does not cure osteoarthritis, it has a positive effect on the patient's condition.
Keep moving!
Despite the potential pain, "immobility" in treating osteoarthritis is not a good idea - it actually speeds up the destruction process.
Only during the work of the joint and during the movement of the articular surfaces, a lubricant is formed, the so-called synovial fluid, which reduces the friction in the joint and provides the cartilage with nutrients.
Ideal movements in which the wrist is not too stressed: swimming, cycling, Nordic walking and gymnastics.