Almost everyone knows joint pain. Playing sports, wearing shopping bags, standing by the kitchen for hours and bending over during daily housework - all this causes the joints, especially the knee and hip joints to fail. Arthritis appears. Are there home remedies for joint pain? When is the doctor's help necessary?

Osteoarticular painis the most common symptom of osteoarthritis, which mainly affects elderly people. Butjoint paincan also apply to young people who have been injured or have developed a rheumatic disease.

Arthritisis unfortunately the result of the natural aging of the cartilage. But not only - also joint overload due to improper lifestyle. Therefore, the disease primarily threatens people who have reached the age of forty, who move too little, are overweight, and who carry weights.

People who suffer from rheumatic diseases, e.g. rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, gout or other such ailments, must be under the care of a rheumatologist, take medications that stop the progression of the disease and benefit from appropriately selected rehabilitation. Over-the-counter drugs can be taken on an ad hoc basis and under the supervision of a physician in order not to lead to dangerous interactions between different drugs.

In the case of a degenerative disease, one of the causes of which is the gradual wear of the articular cartilage, we use over-the-counter medications more often. Common symptoms of this condition are pain, swelling, and deformation of the large joints, mainly the knee, shoulder and hip joints. But degenerations can also appear in the spine and fingers. The exact causes of the disease are unknown. It is also known that it is favored by mature age, gender (women suffer more often), overweight and obesity, overload and micro-injuries, as well as competitive or intensive sports, e.g. running.

As much as 40 percent of all degeneration is knee degeneration. It affects more women than men because doing housework puts a lot of strain on the knees. On the other hand, people with congenital joint defects and genetically burdened with osteoarthritis are particularly vulnerable to the destruction of the hip joint.

Arthritis of the jointsprogressing

With age, the perfectly smooth cartilage (covering the tip of the bones), which acts as a shock absorber in the joint and allows movement, becomes thinner and thinner, with scratches and irregularities appearing on its smooth surface. As a result, the muscles are tensed and the joints are even more overloaded. The compressed cartilage loses the ability to absorb nutrients, and thus the ability to regenerate and moisturize the joints. As the cartilage wears off, the bones begin to rub against each other, causing severe pain when you try to make each movement.

  • Knee

In the initial period, a typical symptom of degeneration is stiffness and pain in the knee when going downstairs. In advanced disease, it hurts with every movement. It is accompanied by unpleasant "crackling" of the bones and limitation of the mobility of the knee. Reddening of the skin and swelling may occur. This usually indicates that there is an exudation (water).

  • Hip

There is a slight stiffness in the joint at first, especially in the morning. A warm shower helps to wake you up. Pain occurs over time, and it worsens when we walk, stand or climb stairs, and subsides at rest. It can be located first in the knee, thigh, groin or buttocks, making diagnosis difficult. Once the disease progresses, morning stiffness in the hip joint can last all day and the pain does not go away even at night. Moving around is difficult or impossible.

Arthritis - when to see a doctor

If the pain occurred as a result of overwork (washing windows, strenuous walk in the mountains, long sitting at the computer), it is enough to "save" the painful joint, eg do not kneel, bend down, sleep on the other side. Occasionally you can use a painkiller. However, if the ailment lasts longer than a week, instead of taking the next tablet, you need to see your GP. Consultation is also needed when the pain recurs for no apparent reason, is very strong or there is morning stiffness. After an interview and examination of the aching joint, the internist may refer you for additional examinations or to a medical rehabilitation specialist. Sometimes it is also useful to consult an orthopedist. X-ray or ultrasound of the affected joint is helpful in making the diagnosis. X-rays show larger degenerative changes within the knee, small ones are only revealed by ultrasound. In the case of the hip joint, an x-ray is sufficient.

Joint pains should prompt you to see a doctor quickly, when:

  • togetherwith pain you will develop fever, chills, severe fatigue, skin changes or difficulty moving,
  • redness of the skin, fever and swelling of one or more joints will appear along with the pain,
  • there is morning stiffness in the joints
  • pain has to do with injury
  • the pain persists after a few days of self-treatment or recurs.

Arthritis - get rid of joint pain

There is no way to cure the disease permanently, but appropriate therapy can reduce pain, increase the range of motion in a joint, and even inhibit the degenerative process.

  • Anti-inflammatory drugs

At the beginning of the disease, the doctor may start the treatment with ointments and gels with analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties (eg Diclofenac, Piroxicam). They need to be rubbed into the skin 4-5 times a day, the more often there is more fat around the joint. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as Ibuprofen, Naproxen, Meloxicam, Ketoprofen, Nabumeton, Paracetamol (analgesic, not anti-inflammatory) help in controlling the pain. Unfortunately, they have many side effects (they irritate the gastric and duodenal mucosa, harm the kidneys and liver), so although most of them can be bought without a prescription, you must use them as prescribed by your doctor. Caution is also advised due to the fact that some painkillers interact with other drugs, e.g. Diclofenac or Ibuprofen intensify the effect of anticoagulants.

  • Drink tran

Regular consumption of this cod liver fat reduces joint pains, so you can reduce the intake of painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs. Fish oil has many beneficial effects on human he alth, in the case of joints it delays the processes of cartilage degeneration and strengthens the body's natural repair mechanisms.

  • Warm and cold

If the pain is accompanied by swelling, you can apply cold compresses or showers. When we know that there is no inflammatory process in the joint, heat therapy will help, which helps to dilate the blood vessels, thus improving the blood supply to the tissues and relieving pain. Heat also increases the elasticity of collagen fibers, preventing tendon stiffness. Warm therapeutic baths (water temperature: 36-38oC) are beneficial. You can add essential oils and camphor to the water, which enhance the therapeutic effect. You can also add sulfur to the water, but such a bath smells bad. The treatment should take 10 to 20 minutes. The treatment should be repeated daily for several days. Contraindication to therapyheat or cold are, among others blood supply disorders.

  • Take care of cartilage

The articular cartilage plays the most important role in maintaining good condition of the joints. When the joints are constantly overloaded, it is damaged, and then enzymes are released that increase inflammation and degenerative changes. Once damaged, articular cartilage never fully regenerates, but defects in its surface are covered over time by a connective tissue scar, which resembles cartilage. The scarring process can be slightly accelerated by taking glucosamine and chondroitin - substances that are responsible for the strength, cohesiveness and durability of cartilage. It is best to choose preparations containing 1000 mg of glucosamine and 500 mg of chondroitin.

  • Physiotherapy treatments and physiotherapy

They relax muscles, have anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties. Good results are achieved by cryotherapy, magnetic field treatment, laser and therapeutic lamp irradiation, electrical treatments, and hydrotherapy. Improvement is usually obtained after 10-15 treatments. Exercises under the supervision of a physiotherapist are also recommended, which relax pathologically tense muscles and strengthen weakened ones, restoring the balance of tension and muscle cooperation, and increasing the range of movements.

Important

Knee surgery is more complicated than hip surgery and it takes longer to recover from the affected leg. After implantation of the hip joint implant, one gets up after 2 days, after implantation of the knee prosthesis - after 10. Reaching the form, depending on age and fitness, may take up to 3 months. Artificial ponds serve well for 10-15 years (sometimes longer). Knee endoprostheses are more prone to damage.

  • Knee Lock

A specialist injects a steroid drug into the affected area, which removes pain and inflammation. In exceptional circumstances, the injection may be repeated. However, the procedure should not be used more than two or three times, as it may result in complications (increased damage to the articular cartilage). Sometimes cartilage regeneration drugs are injected into the knee joint. In the case of the hip joint, neither of these methods is applicable.

  • Surgical operation

The procedure is performed when other methods do not bring results. Depending on the destruction of the joint, age and general he alth, the doctor chooses the method of surgery: replacing a part of the joint with a prosthesis (partial arthroplasty) or cutting out the damaged joint and implanting an endoprosthesis (total arthroplasty).

Daily gymnastics

Exercise yourself, but don't do it on your own. The selection of exercises must be adapted tohe alth and age. It is easy to push the joints and instead of helping - harm. The best exercises are weight-bearing - lying down or in the water. If you have stiff joints in the morning, do some simple exercises before you get out of bed. Lying on your back, bring your legs bent at the knees to your chest, pressing them lightly. Hold this position for the count to five. Repeat 10 times. The exercise improves the mobility of the hip and knee joints.

Types of endoprostheses

Hip:

  • Cement - it is attached to the bone with a special bone cement.
  • Cementless - screwed into the bone. Due to greater endurance, it is recommended for younger people.
  • Attached with the BHR system - the femoral head is strengthened by putting a metal cap over it, while the acetabulum remains intact. Recommended for young people who lead an active lifestyle.

knee:

  • Kondylarna - only replaces articular surfaces.
  • Half-tied - with great damage to the joint and ligaments. Restores full movement of the joint.
  • Bonded (hinged) - enables leg movements in one axis, e.g. straightening and bending, therefore it is rarely used.
You must do it
  • Move more. Even a walk will improve your joints if you do it every day. Walk with a brisk stride, breathing deeply. Swimming is good for the joints - it activates all muscles and relieves tension.
  • Do not stay in the same position for a long time. If you are standing, sit down for a few minutes. When you work sitting down, stretch your bones from time to time. Bend your legs when bending, and when weeding your garden, kneel or squat and stretch your knees every 15 minutes.
  • Lose weight. This is an additional load on the joints. Remember that metabolism decreases with age and we cannot eat as much as in our youth, unless we move more to burn unnecessary calories.
  • The daily diet should include dairy products - the calcium contained in it is the main building block of bones. Reach fish, mainly sea fish, at least twice a week. Eat plenty of vegetables and fruits. Limit meat and cold cuts - the arachidic acid contained in them increases inflammatory processes.

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Spine, bones, joints