Unfortunately, many people, and not only the elderly, know what arthrosis is. The disease has become significantly younger in recent decades, increasingly affecting 30–40-year-olds. Almost everyone whose age has exceeded the sixty-year milestone complains of joint problems. It is believed that women suffer from arthrosis more often than men, but in old age this difference is minimal. This ailment is one of the most common causes of disability and disability.
So what is arthrosis? This is a very common joint disease. It affects about 15% of the world's population. Arthrosis is known since ancient times, as evidenced by studies of the fossil remains of people living in the Stone Age.
Arthrosis is the wear and tear of joints and adjacent tissues: cartilage, articular bone structures, ligaments. In addition, there are growths on the surface of bone tissue, which are already secondary changes in the joint. The disease is chronic, and if it appears, it will only progress, and new joints will begin to get involved in the process. Osteoarthritis often affects the joints, which account for the main burden during life: knee, hip, shoulder, joints of the spine, toes and hands. The disease can affect one or symmetrical joints, or several at once. The most common types of disease are gonarthrosis (knee damage) and coxarthrosis (hip area).
With age, the body naturally degrades all systems and tissues, including articular cartilage. But in the normal version, the process of destruction and synthesis is balanced, and with arthrosis, its active degeneration occurs. Therefore, arthrosis can be characterized as premature wear of articular cartilage. To date, the causes of the onset and development of the disease are not fully understood.
What is arthrosis of the joints, and what are its symptoms? The onset of the disease is rarely accompanied by any symptoms. Arthrosis is characterized by pain during exertion, which subsides at rest, a crunch in the joint, limitation of mobility, and deformation.
Arthrosis should not be confused with arthritis, although both diseases affect the joint. The first case is a chronic dystrophic change in cartilage of a non-inflammatory nature. Arthritis has an inflammatory nature. In this case, the joint area swells and becomes hot, redness appears, pain is present even at rest. With arthritis, the feeling of discomfort is sharp and twitching.
What is arthrosis and what are the causes of its appearance? The sources of degenerative changes in the joint are not completely clear, but the fact that old age is one of the risk factors is beyond doubt. But this does not mean that the disease will certainly appear in old age.
One of the main causes of the development of the disease is the aging of the chondrocytes that make up the cartilage tissue. With age, a gradual decrease or erasure of the cartilage tissue occurs , resulting in pain during movement. This process can be the result of physical activity associated with sports and a number of professions. Arthrosis can develop as a result of injuries and in post-traumatic conditions.
The disease often develops against a background of hormonal changes, for example, with the onset of menopause.
Overweight people are most susceptible to arthrosis, especially knee joints . This is due to overloads on them and the peculiarity of metabolic processes in people with large body mass.
The disease can develop on the background of endocrine disorders, such as thyroid disease and diabetes.
Not the last role in the development of the disease is played by a genetic predisposition.
What is arthrosis and how to treat it? I must say, it is impossible to completely eliminate the disease. With timely measures and adequate treatment, you can pause the process and ease the condition. Today, new effective methods of treating arthrosis have been developed. Along with medications, ultrasound and microwave therapy, physiotherapy, barotherapy, and coolant applications are widely used.