Gonarthrosis or, as it is sometimes incorrectly called, gonoarthrosis (arthrosis of the knee joint) is a chronic disease that has a gradually progressive course, accompanied by degenerative changes in the cartilage tissue of the joint.
As the disease progresses, a person may completely lose the ability to move independently. Timely diagnosis and treatment of gonarthrosis allows stopping the pathological process and saving a person from pain.
Most often, this pathology is diagnosed in middle-aged and elderly people, but it can also appear in young people. Women are several times more likely than men to suffer from this disease. In this article, we will consider the clinical signs and tactics for the treatment of gonarthrosis.
The main clinical signs of gonarthrosis
As we have already said, gonarthrosis has a gradually progressive course. Thus, in the initial stages of a sick person, practically nothing worries, but over time the symptoms intensify.
The main clinical sign is mild pain in the knee, which occurs during prolonged or heavy physical exertion. The patient shows a certain feeling of stiffness in the joint, the appearance of a "starting" pain syndrome (occurring at the beginning of the movement, passing after "spreading" the face).
In this disease, there are no external changes in the knee. Sometimes people notice some swelling.
As the disease progresses, the pain becomes more intense. The pain syndrome occurs even with little physical activity, it becomes more pronounced with prolonged loading of the knee. During rest, the pain subsides and then returns with resumption of movement.
In the future, the pain syndrome becomes constant, present both during exercise and at rest. Movements in the joint are limited, a rough crunch is heard when bending the knee. With pronounced pathological changes, the knee is deformed, which further limits movement.
How is knee osteoarthritis treated?
Treatment of arthrosis of the knee joint consists of both non-drug and drug methods, surgical intervention if necessary.
Patients with this disease are advised to avoid loading the knee, try to unload it as much as possible with the help of various orthopedic devices, canes. The most important point is weight loss. In 2017, scientists from the Medical University published an article in which it was found that obesity increases the likelihood of developing gonarthrosis 4-10 times and occurs in every third patient.
In addition, a sick person is prescribed special therapeutic exercises, physiotherapy procedures, for example, UHF therapy.
In terms of drug treatment, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs may be recommended to reduce pain. In case of their ineffectiveness, intra-articular injections of glucocorticosteroids are performed. Also, the treatment plan is supplemented with chondroprotectors, hyaluronic acid injections.
Keep in mind that any medicine can only be used according to a doctor's prescription.
In the later stages of the disease, the main method of treatment is surgical intervention, which involves replacing the joint surfaces with artificial implants.