Arthrosis is a progressive joint disease in which a slow destruction of its cartilage occurs. If it is not treated, mobility in the joint deteriorates markedly and the person will be disabled. The article considers information about what arthrosis, its symptoms and treatment, characteristic signs and causes of appearance.
What do you need to know about this disease

Dystrophic destruction of joint and cartilage is the most common joint disease on the planet. Statistical data is surprising: four in five people around the world suffer to one degree or another of the injury of joint tissue and all the consequences of such a pathological process.
The disease is also found in men and women. For a long time, it was believed that arthrosis was a disease of joints in the elderly. But recently, the joints began to be affected by people under 30.
This arthrosis is very dangerous because it can quickly lead to the development of immobility in one person. Unfortunately, annually, the number of changes in degenerative joints increases.
What is the difference between arthrosis and arthritis? With arthritis, inflammation of intra -articular tissue occurs. But with arthrosis, a person suffers from progressive deformation damage in the musculoskeletal system.
Why
The main cause of arthrosis is a violation of articulation metabolism. Because of this, cartilage gradually loses elasticity. The causes of this joint disease are:
- pronounced disorders of the metabolic process;
- hormonal imbalance;
- decreased blood volume that feeds the joint;
- Rheumatoid arthritis;
- psoriasis;
- Greater physical activity in the joints (including athletes), because they begin to collapse, and this happens at a relatively early age.
The occurrence of arthrosis and its additional progression may affect these factors;
- Injuries (more injuries and heavier were the degree of development of the highest pathology);
- Increased body weight (carries excessive load in the joint and, as a result, even faster development of the disease);
- purulent arthritis;
- Age (in elderly patients, the disease occurs much more frequency);
- poor quality and unbalanced diet;
- frequent hypothermia;
- penetration of joint infection;
- Some autoimmune pathologies;
- General body poisoning, including alcohol and nicotine;
- Specific infectious diseases - such as syphilis, gonorrhea, tuberculosis;
- some pathological states of the thyroid gland;
- hemophilia;
- Permit syndrome.
Characteristics Characteristics
The most obvious and characteristic sign of arthrosis is pain. It disappears if the affected organ is at rest and intensifies if it is subject to intensive loads. We learned all about arthrosis, more about these signs groups, because in some cases they are the first to sign up for the development of bone and cartilage injury.
Pain
If the joint starts to get sick, this is the first sign of your defeat. Unpleasant sensations are intensified if a person makes clear movements. Location of arthrosis pain symptoms - only where pain is. But in some cases, it can also apply to other sections of the muscle system, which are not affected by the pathological process.
It is characteristic that at night a person almost does not suffer pain. If he finds the ideal position of the body, he will fall asleep calmly. Closer to the morning, they are activated, which forces a person to wake up. In the last stages of pathology, pain becomes so severe that it deprives a person of peace.
Cryst in the joints
This is a distinct symptom of degenerative lesion: due to the fact that organ elasticity is reduced, bones begin to rub, which is accompanied by a characteristic sound. Sometimes you can hear from a distance.
The sound will be brighter, more actively this disease progresses. And anyway, it will be significantly different from the crack.
Mobility limitation
In the early stage of pathology development, the volume of active movements is preserved. But if arthrosis progresses, bone formations begin to germinate in the cartilage tissue, which is why muscle spasm occurs. The active movements of this are violated, since joint mobility is guaranteed by sufficiently developed cartilage.
A decrease in movements of movements also comes from the fact that the body cannot deal with conventional loads. This is why, in the last stages of the development of this pathology, the movement is almost impossible.
Deformation
This symptom appears because growths appear on bone surfaces, cartilage. Due to constant irritation, synovial fluid production is activated, which is why the organ swells.
Important! Deformation is one of the late symptoms of arthrosis. The articulation is already affected by the disease largely, and often conservative treatment does not bring results.
Disease stages

In total, doctors in classifying the severity of the disease distinguish four (degrees) of arthrosis.
- In 1 degree, osteophytes in the diagnosis are not detected. There is some narrowing of the joint gap.
- With damage to the 2nd degree joint, the gap is slightly narrow and the osteophytes have already managed to reach the surface of the bone. With acute arthrosis, very severe pain is observed.
- With damage to the third degree, the gap is visibly narrowed and, on the surface of the bone, there are a large number of osteophytes. With exacerbation, the temperature increases.
- The fourth stage of bone arthrosis and joints is characterized by the fact that there is virtually no joint gap, and the cavity is almost completely affected.
Depending on the type and place of damage to the joints of the disease:
- Osteoarthritis is a degenerative dystrophic disease of a supporting engine with cartilage damage;
- Multiple degenerative damage to the joints;
- spoke bone injury;
- defeat of the shoulder articulation;
- COKSARROSIS is knee arthrosis;
- Reactive arthrosis is damage to the joints after an infectious disease;
- Wandering - Transitional Arthrosis;
- ankle joint injuries, wrist joint;
- Degenerative hand diseases.
What is the danger of arthrosis
Without the desired treatment, this disease is dangerously multiple complications:
- complete destruction of the organ;
- significant deformation;
- Damage to peripheral joints;
- Almost total impossibility of making any movements that threaten the development of disability;
- Vertebral spine violation, the development of intervertebral hernias in it;
- A significant decrease in the patient's quality of life.
Diagnostic methods
The diagnosis of joint diseases includes:
- General inspection;
- palpation;
- a procedure that allows diagnosing the volume and amplitude of the executed movements;
- blood test (general and biochemical);
- urine analysis;
- Articulation X -raio;
- Study of a fabric of cartilage tissue under a microscope;
- Ultrasound;
- Magnetic resonance imaging.
How to treat the articulation
It is necessary to start treating arthrosis as soon as possible - this is the only way to suspend the development of the pathology and prevent complete immobilization of the patient. The main task of the doctor and patient is to eliminate the causes of destruction, the elimination of inflammatory processes, the pain. Remember that it is impossible to completely restore joints, but treatment can improve your condition.
The principles of disease treatment are as follows:
- Free of excessive loads;
- Classes of Medical Gymnastics in Arthrosis;
- Physiotherapy prescription;
- the goal of walking to the knees;
- SPA treatment;
- Oxygen therapy;
- drug treatment;
- Diet Optimization.
Such medications are prescribed from medicines for the treatment of arthrosis.
- Non -esteroid anti -inflammatory drugs. With their help, you can effectively relieve pain, reduce the intensity of inflammatory processes. In addition, the prescription of ointment medicines will be the most effective - they eliminate damage to the gastrointestinal mucosa.
- Corticosteroid drugs relieve inflammatory phenomena and pain in the process of exacerbation of the process. Intra -articular drug administration is shown (this procedure is performed only in clinical conditions). These products can be used for rheumatoid arthrosis.
- Arthrosis tablets that help restore the tissue of the articulation cartilage. These funds should be used until a pronounced improvement and increase in the volume of joint movements performed. It is shown to use all hyaluronic acid -based medications. The use of these drugs is often justified in the treatment of knee joint arthrosis.
- With arthrosis, the use of other means is indicated. Improvement after starting treatment with these drugs does not occur before, as in a month, provided that the medicine is constantly applied. Effective treatment with these medications is possible if the patient is in accordance with all the doctor's prescriptions and, above all, falling in overweight.
With very severe pain, the doctor can prescribe analgesics from the narcotics series. However, its use is limited due to the risk of complications.
The treatment of arthrosis with folk remedies can be used as a type of auxiliary therapy. In addition, the doctor selects the most effective tool for each patient. An important place in this therapy is occupied by proper nutrition.
Pay attention! Healing arthrosis, including deformed knee joint arthrosis is completely impossible. With the help of effective treatment, it is possible to suspend the additional destruction of tissues and prevent the patient's immobilization.
Nutrition and Arthrosis

With the progressive chronic destruction of the joint cartilage, great attention should be paid to proper nutrition. It is strictly forbidden because excess body weight can cause additional articulation destruction. To reduce weight, flour products should be excluded from the diet, sweet. It is forbidden to drink alcoholic beverages and especially beer.
But the fish should be on the table with arthrosis every day. It's better if it's low. Particularly useful in the destruction of the joint is gelanted. It contains a large amount of collagen health. It is very quickly absorbed by the body and replenishes the lack of cartilage tissue. The regular use of this tasty and healthy dish makes the joints mobile, and the cartilage makes it elastic.
The daily menu should have more products and dishes containing vitamin B6 - pyridoxine. It is found in legumes, nuts, potatoes, vegetables. It is useful eating eggs, liver, dairy products - they are rich in riboflavin.
Arthrosis prevention
The prevention methods of this disease are as follows:
- Normalization of motor activity, elimination of hypodinamia;
- an occupation only of those sports that do not require excessive charge (fitness and aerobic will be very useful for that person);
- Avoid heavy physical work, which leads to intensive destruction of the joints;
- Avoid too much, fighting weight in every way available and harmless;
- Eradication of all bad habits;
- regular fresh air tours;
- Swimming;
- Exclusion of stressful situations.
Arthrosis is much easier to warn you than treat it later. In the first appearance of articulation pain, crispness and restrictions of the doctor, you should immediately visit the doctor to verify the joints. The timely start of treatment will prevent the development of complications. Arthrosis is dangerous because a person can be disabled because of them.