Arthrosis of the knee joint: what are these stages, symptoms and myths about treatment

The arthrosis of the knee joint is a complex disease of a degenerative-dystrophic nature, which affects the bone-cherry section of the knee.The disease most often affects the knee department of the lower extremities.Pathological changes in cartilage and peri-human zones, which in most cases develop against the background of injuries, the biological aging of the body, a violations of an autoimmune nature, seriously inhibit the musculoskeletal potential of the legs.The joint becomes stiff, loses stability, normal motor and depreciation abilities.As a result, it is gradually deformed, and in the last stages it completely fails.

Degeneration in articular tissues is manifested not only in the form of physical dysfunction of the lower extremities, but also with strong painful sensations in them.In severe course, pathology causes disability, in some cases - paralysis of the legs.In connection with such an disappointing prognosis, it is important to identify as early as possible and immediately begin to treat it.

Important about the disease

It is important for patients to familiarize themselves with the material in order to master the information in full information regarding the mechanism of emergence and clinical manifestations of pathology.Immediately we note that arthrosis and arthritis are closely interconnected, since the disease under consideration is a consequence of an arthritic disease.But where do the ill -fated ailments come from, which mercilessly destroy the most important bone connection?What is the severity of gonartrosis and by what manifestations can it be recognized?

The causes of arthrosis

Degenerative-dystrophic pathogenesis "launch" the following factors-provocateurs:

• The once suffered injuries - fractures of the lower leg, dislocations of the knee, damage to the meniscus, tears and ruptures of ligaments, falling on the knees, all kinds of bruises;
• Excessive physical activity;
• sedentary lifestyle;
• high body weight index;
• systemic pathologies for rheumatoid, gouty, psoriatic type, systemic lupus erythematosus;
• genetically inherited weakness of the ligamentous system or congenital underdevelopment of structural elements of joint;
• metabolic disorders and blood flow;
• hormonal failure, diabetes and other endocrine pathologies;
• Transferred or chronic infectious and inflammatory ailments.

Quite often, people themselves become the culprits of the fact that a difficult to develop a jointly joint disease develops.Often, having received injury, they ignore the appeal to a specialist, preferring to do the first preparation of pain, home -made lotions and the like.And a few years later, due to inadequate treatment spent in the past, they come to see a doctor with gonarthrosis, at best, moderate.And here, one physical prevention and analgesic ointments, as in the very early course, you can’t do, often have to act radically, using surgical tactics.

Stages of destruction

In Orthopedics, this disease is divided into stage, from which the specialist is repulsed in the future when compiling a treatment regimen.The degree, nature, localization, the nature of the origin of the destruction of the bone compound in the knee is revealed by a number of diagnostic measures, such as radiography, MRI, CT, ultrasound, different types of blood tests and urine.

There can be no question of qualitative treatment without detailed information, both about the condition of the knee joint, and about the characteristics of the patient’s body, as well as without a visit to the doctor and the receipt of adequate therapeutic recommendations from him.Therefore, wanting to improve the quality of life, do not ignore a visit to an experienced specialist, only he is able to tell you whether it is possible to do with qualified conservative help or, nevertheless, with your problem, only surgical intervention will be effective.

Pathology has several stages of development, according to the classification of Kellgren there are only four of them.All of them characterize the severity of morphological changes (the presence of osteophytes, a decrease in the volume of articular cartilage and its degree of thinning, narrowing of the joint gap, etc.) and clinical signs (limited bending/extension, the indicator of disorder, the nature and intensity of pain, etc.). 

• Arthrosis of the first stage - This is a disease that is only born.External symptoms are mild or absent, the congruence and joint shapes are satisfactory.In X -ray pictures or MRI photos, small regional osteophytes are traced along the edges of the articular surfaces, in the problematic department, slow subchondral osteosclerosis, and minor bone cysts.The joint gap is usually normal or changed, but not significant.
• In case of ailment second degreeIn addition to the above indicators, The osteocosclerotic focus is more pronounced, the narrowing of the inter -mudflow gap is clearly visible.The patient begins to more strongly and more often disturb the pain at the time of walking, descent/climbing the stairs, long standing, sometimes at night.Combustration develops, movements in the joint are acquired in inferiority, especially when bending.
• The third stage It is characterized by a sharp progression of irreversible degeneration and deformation.The joint configuration is noticeably distorted, the distance between the joint surfaces is significantly reduced, bone growths in the form of spikes of increased sizes.The pain becomes prolonged and pronounced, and it worries a person even at rest, the lameness is aggravated.Dependence on supporting devices and outside help appears. 
• The fourth stageDegenerative-dystrophic pathogenesis, when there are voluminous osteophytic growths, the hyaline cartilage is completely destroyed, the joint gap disappears or barely traces, the epiphyses of the articular bones that form articulations are deformed in the strongest way.The knee joint is recognized as a completely non-viable body of the musculoskeletal system, a person becomes disabled. 

Symptoms and complaints

The severity of clinical manifestations depends not only on the pathomorphological features, but also on the factor of individuality.In any case, there is little pleasant in gonarthrosis, it is very difficult to transfer to both 2nd and 3-4 tbsp.The general list of symptoms includes:

• pain syndrome, mainly mechanical type (stupid, aching, sharp, sudden, periodic and permanent);
• the appearance of crunch during movements;
• stiffness of the joint;
• restriction of the amplitude of movements;
• muscle weakness of the limb;
• hyperthermia of the skin and swelling in the zone of the knee;
• a change in the gait, manifested by limping and pumping the legs;
• instability or syndrome of the "drawer";
• The "jamming" of the knee occurring with a sudden blockage of the bone connection movements.

Important! Conservative treatment of arthrosis of the knee joint will not help if the disease has a complicated course, which can already happen in the worst case at the second stage of development of bone-cold degeneration.Unlike traditional conservative therapy and alternative techniques, all, without exception, the operation with serious gonartrosis of the 2-3-4 degrees-the only way that for a long period of life helps to significantly improve the quality of life.

Conservative treatment

Non -surgical methods of treatment are advisable in the initial phase of deforming arthrosis.The principle of non -surgical treatment suggests:

• systematic execution of exercise therapy, developed by a professional on an individual basis;
• conducting physiotherapy procedures;
• the use of painkillers in the form of ointments, tablets, injections, etc.;
• proper nutrition and following a special diet prescribed by a doctor;
• compliance with a special regime of everyday physical activity;
• a complete rejection of bad habits;
• unquestioning passage of re -diagnostic control;
• An annual visit to a specialized sanatorium-resort medical institution.

Operation for arthrosis of the knee joint

Now we will get acquainted with surgical methods in which the need more often arises, since in the early stage the pathology often remains unnoticed.Basically, it is already necessary to deal with arthrosis in complete "heyday", which largely covered the articular structures and affected the periarticular matter.

• Endoprosthetics - It helps in more than 95 % of cases to fully restore the lost locomotor and supporting functions of the knee of the lower limb.The operation is not easy, after it it follows complex rehabilitation, but the effect is worth it.About 3 months after the installation of an artificial analogue, instead of a native joint, which has undergone irreversible pathological changes, a full -fledged amplitude of the leg movements is returned, and the pain syndrome is completely eliminated.
• Arthrodesis - The unexplored procedure on the “close” of joints, due to its aggressive effect on biological structures, but sometimes it has a place to be, for example, if a person does not have the opportunity to undergo implantation.Its essence is to remove the articular surfaces and the motionless connection of the articular bones with special fixing devices in a favorable position.Over time, natural fusion of the listed elements occurs.Artificial ankylosis completely blocks the mobility of the joint, but allows you to achieve good disorder of the limb and reduction of pain.
• The osteotomy of the knee - It is also used in extreme situations, for the same reason as arthrodesis, in particular, when it is necessary to delay the endoprosthetics for several years.At the time of the operational session, the specialist performs an artificial fracture, firing bones and placing them at a more correct angle, in order to profitably distribute the load on the cartilage elements.  

The irreversible pathogenesis cannot be corrected by physical exercises, you must understand this.Ointments and even drugs from a series of chondroprotectors, not to mention grandmother's advice to be treated with gelatin, will not play a special role either.The maximum that they can help in the neglected state of affairs is to prepare the bone-muscular apparatus for the upcoming operation.

Modern knee implants are able to withstand ordinary everyday loads, while functioning perfectly for at least 15 years, and often 20-25 years.A person can even engage in some sports with a replaced joint.

Treatment of 3 degrees

At 3 stages of arthrosis, surgery is performed.Changes in the joint are severely pronounced, in this phase the disease extremely reduces the standard of living and performance of the patient.Bone-crooked damage has reached the critical point at which the tissues of the bone compound do not represent any functional significance.The hyaline cover is almost completely destroyed. 

• An important cartilage is not restored by itself, including through non -surgical methods.
• The bare and flattened surfaces of the interacting bone ends exert unnatural pressure on each other, constantly rub among themselves, seriously injuring nearby soft tissues and deforming even more every day.
• A person feels terrible pain, not to mention lost abilities to walk normally.Patients experience daily flour, when the dream is not a joy, and during the day there is no rest from pain.Only a unit of people note a relatively tolerable state.
• Anti -inflammatory analgesic drugs, as a rule, have a mild effect, but do not "work" more often.It makes no sense in chondroprotectors, since the strengthening and fueling of the meager remains of cartilage does not save the situation.

The consequences of arthrosis of 2-3 degrees are sometimes trying to treat with a minimally invasive surgery (arthroscopy), in which it is possible to remove marginal osteophytes, as well as extracting the torn bone-cold fragments from the joint cavity.Such manipulations, as the reviews testify, slightly alleviate the patient's condition, slightly improve the motor function, but temporarily.Osteoarthrosis in the knee joint remains active, and in the near future it will again manifest itself. 

Pathogenesis of 3-4 degrees is a very serious problem, which is really possible to solve only much more complex reconstructive and plastic surgical tactics.To date, there is no such procedure that could be compared with endoprosthetics.Replacing the knee joint with a prosthesis, completely repeating the mechanical features, the configuration of the shapes and sizes of the natural organ, will make it possible to say goodbye to both the ill -fated pathology and the disability, which she "awarded you".

The disease is rapidly progressing and is able to get from a moderately medium phase to 4 degrees in a matter of months.Surgery needs to be held as soon as possible, until degenerative processes penetrated deep into the bone.Highly damaged bones can cause difficulties with the production of an endoprosthesis.

Many, not fully realizing that the severity of the degeneration that has occurred is not comparable to conservative and non -traditional tactics, try to go around the operation with all the ways, swallowing tablets with handfuls, applying ointments on the sore area.Someone turns to osteopaths, private doctors practicing all kinds of alternative methods.Unfortunately, you will not go against nature, healing will not come after them, and this fact must be reconciled.Therefore, throw off the meaningless ventures, act prudently.

Your physical viability is entirely dependent on your solution!You can continue to suffer from stiffness and pain, in vain testing "empty" methods of treatment: drugs and non -standard products that do not have evidence -based efficiency in your severity of the disease.And you can undergo surgical treatment and start living a full life, free yourself from past suffering and supporting devices.

It is not necessary to worry about surgery, modern technologies have stepped far forward, and today abroad brilliantly change the knee joints with durable implants.After such an implantation implemented in a good clinic, the risk of complications is minimal (1-2 %), and the restoration of mobility functions occurs in more than 95 % of cases.After replacing the joint, the rehabilitation course will follow 3-4 months, which provides:

• physical recovery through special therapeutic exercises;
• taking medications (antibiotics, antitrombotic drugs, etc.);
• The program of physiotherapy, including myostimulating, anti -inflammatory, painkillers and wound healing procedures;
• Massage sessions (in the later stages of rehabilitation).

It is useful to know! At 1 degree, the ailment can be stopped and prevented conservatively.If you do nothing and start the knee arthrosis, allowing it to cross from 1 to 2 degree, treatment with drugs will be much more problematic, but a non -surgical approach is still appropriate for a certain category of patients.The last two stages are always an operation.

Treatment of 2 degrees

With medium gravity gonartrosis, the quality of life is already becoming pretty spoiled.The sore knee bothers more, the painful syndrome manifests itself more often and more intense than it was at the beginning of the disease.The pain is especially pronounced immediately after the morning awakening, while lifting and descent on the staircase.Often there is a feeling of unpleasant numbness, which appears after prolonged walking and long standing in one position.Flexion in the knee region is reduced, the patient is not able to bend his leg, as physiology requires.A person begins to spare his limb, trying to almost not step on it, which is why a gradual muscle atrophy occurs.

We focus on that treatment without fail implies a qualified integrated approach.

• If the doctor does not see the urgent need for surgery, a reduction in the load on the problematic department is primarily prescribed.In the presence of excess weight, in order to ensure a good unloading of the affected by arthrosis, it is necessary to adjust the body weight, adhering to the diet that the doctor recommends you.
• All patients are prescribed the use of special orthopedic devices at the time of movement.This, depending on the existing problem, can be knee fixers, compression linen, elastic bandages, cane, crutches, walkers.
• Additionally, an orthopedic traumatologist will prescribe a kind of set of exercises, which will help strengthen and increase the endurance of the muscles of the affected limb.
• Also, arthrosis in moderately medium manifestation involves the use of medicines, which include substances present in the cartilage tissues of the knee.These include compounds based on chondroitin sulfate, injections of hyaluronic acid, drugs with glucosamine.They cannot restore the cartilage, but saturate it with nutrient components, so that the remission of the disease can be achieved.
• Physiuming procedures are also recommended, however, they are used only after all signs of inflammation disappear.Physical sessions, for example, with a laser, magnet or ultrasound, should be held within the medical facility.Thanks to physiotherapy, nutrition and metabolism in bone, muscle, and cartilaginous tissues improve.If you bought a vibro -acoustic device for home use, first find out from the specialist about the possibility of its use in your diagnosis and the features of the operation of the device.

We examined the basic principles on which official treatment of arthrosis is based on the standards of orthopedics.Since many people with osteoarthritis 2 tbsp.They are very interested in alternative methods, looking for their salvation in them, we offer to get acquainted with the most popular of them.And we find out whether they are as unique as they present them on the Internet.

Stem cells for the treatment of the knee

We will talk about autotransplantation of mezinhamal stem cells to a patient with gonartrosis of the knee taken from the comb of the pelvic or femoral bone.Cell therapy, according to interested sources, will achieve, almost the self -renewal of the entire joint by activating regenerative processes of self -healing in the damaged segment.Thanks to this technology, it is theoretically to achieve an improvement in the components of units of the bone-cheerful organ.However, in practice, there is not a single “living” radiographic evidence that would confirm that after the introduction of stem cells in the affected place, the joint became healthy.

The positive effect of stem cells on the joints and bones has not been proven under great doubt, since this technique has not yet been recognized in orthopedics.Scientists only study and experiment it.Moreover, there is information regarding the unsafe effect of stem cells on the human body, which, according to highly comprehensive experts, are able to provoke oncology.What about those people who paid for the procedure, while they were satisfied with the result?Here we can only say one thing: many patients will believe for that kind of money and in eternal life, but the placebo effect does not work long, do not forget about it either.

Treatment with mud

Therapeutic mud sources containing unique components (magnesium, chrome, iodine, bromine, calcium nitrate, etc.) contribute to reducing painful symptoms, increasing blood flow to sore zones, stimulation of metabolism.They are of the greatest value for people with a mild stage of illness or patients who have already undergone an operation on the leg.It is permissible to carry out mud therapy to 2 degrees, if the doctor believes that the natural remedy in combination with the main treatment program will reduce the aggression of pathological phenomena (stop progression) and improve the overall clinical picture.Mudley is practiced in special medical institutions of the resort and recreational type.Natural healing mud on the basis of peloids is used in the form of applications and in combination with the method of galvanization (electrophoresis).

Using gelatin

Natural gelatin is a safe tool that allows maintaining joint structures in good condition.A jelly -like substrate diluted in water is recommended to be consumed.According to the reviews of some doctors, gelatin is so faster and more productive to affect bone, cartilage and muscle-ligamentous elements.Experts emphasize that this method does not have healing properties, it only promotes the prevention of arthrosis.Consequently, with the already consistent pathogenesis, gelatinochence, in case of lack of pathology or in the earliest stages, can be considered exclusively as a measure of prevention of the appearance or progression of degenerative-dystrophic changes.When the disease is of medium and severe in nature, this approach will not be made for preventive purposes.

Ayurveda for the joints

Modern non-traditional medicine is known for many extraordinary trends, including treatment for Ayurveda of various parts of the musculoskeletal system.According to this unofficial course, damage to the joint is associated with the excess of toxins accumulated in the body due to energy disharmony.The damaging mechanism of the impaired energy balance (cotton) is primarily weakening of Agni, or digestive fire, which led to the accumulation of unhappy food residues (AMA) in the intestine.They release toxins that blood transports to joint, where harmful substances settled and inhibit metabolism processes.

According to Ayurveda, osteoarthritis is classified into several types, and for each type, its own treatment system has been invented, the basis of each of them is diet, grass -to -thelert, taking Ayurvedic tablets and powders, yoga and respiratory gymnastics, non -traditional massage, auto -training for healing, etc. Of course, all this sounds tempting, but if arthrosis is not possibleTurn back even through scientific high technologies, can you believe that herbal powders, treatment with thoughts and other tactics Ayurveda will cure irreversible deformations?!

Salt compresses

Salt is used to prepare a saturated salt solution used to impregnate compresses, which are applied to the sore spot for several hours.Such therapy should not be considered as an independent remedy, and even more so as a panacea for gonarthrosis.Salt is able to reassure temporarily pain, save soft tissues from edema covering the bone structure without harm to biological structures.But she will not heal the ailment and will not put the patient on the feet of the patient!Its action is purely symptomatic.The solution is prepared at the rate of: 100 g of salt is taken per 1 liter of water temperature.

It is worth familiarizing yourself! Sometimes salt is used in a dry heated form, which is placed in a bag, and the local heating of the knee is performed.Sometimes as wet, but hot bandages.Hot procedures are dangerous with purulent-inflammatory processes in the joint cavity, they will only exacerbate the clinical picture.Therefore, do not use such recipes without being sure that the defeat is not accompanied by a similar process.