Osteoarthritis of the hip joint is also called coxarthrosis. It is a degenerative-dystrophic disease of the musculoskeletal system. Coxarthrosis starts from the articular cartilage, from where the thinning process begins, the cartilage is fragmented, thus losing the main function of the joint - shock absorption.
The process is complicated by disruption of the blood supply to the head of the femur, in which aseptic necrosis develops, which in turn is accompanied by arthrosis. After that, the patient must administer drugs, do certain exercises or conduct a treatment that includes a whole complex.
Causes of the disease
Of course, the reasons that give impetus to the disease can be completely different. If the disease is associated with constant immobility of a person, then the treatment will not be difficult, just change your lifestyle and do not forget that after that there is prevention of the disease. In this way, it will be possible to get rid of the main symptoms that lead to the fact that the pain periodically returns and, in the end, does not go away at all. Bones and joints, although they are strong and can withstand considerable weight, nevertheless, with constant physical stress on the body, they can fail. Take care to get rid of unnecessary stress that can lead to the first signs of the disease. Injuries will not lead to anything good, it does not matter here whether the injuries are accidental or not. Due to injuries received in youth, this disease very often develops in athletes, whose treatment is not always carried out immediately. Here the diagnosis will be unequivocal, the load on the body will have to be limited, in this case it will not be possible to treat the disease in a different way.
As strange as it may seem, heredity can affect the development of coxarthrosis. Some people have a congenital dislocation of the hip that eventually develops into osteoarthritis of the hip.
There are two forms of the disease: primary form and secondary form. In the first case, the disease develops independently, and pain is felt, while the secondary form is a consequence of other diseases. They can become:
- Perthes disease;
- Congenital hip dislocation;
- hip dysplasia;
- Received joint injuries;
- Aseptic necrosis of the femoral head;
- Inflammation.
- Most often, the primary form of the disease appears after 50 years, that is, when the joints of the body wear out and then pain is felt.
Symptoms
It is possible to determine the arthrosis of the hip joint by what symptoms appear. Generally, this will be pain that occurs when walking. This disease is chronic, so the symptoms appear once and cannot disappear. Pains gradually increase, at first they are barely noticeable, but over time, if you do not pay attention to this, the symptoms worsen and become more noticeable.
Most often, the symptoms appear when the body does not move for a long time, that is, pain can appear after sleep, after a person has been sitting in one position for a long time. Such an unpleasant sensation is called initial pain. After a person develops some joints, the pain subsides for a while.
Areas of localization of pain can be different. The main part is manifested in the inguinal region, buttock region, on the front surface of the thigh, followed by a transition to the knee, sometimes on the outer region of the left or right thigh.
Such symptoms without timely treatment do not end in anything good. The patient during walking, when he experiences the greatest pain, tries to avoid it or at least make the symptoms less noticeable, which is why the gait is disturbed and, as a result, other disorders in the body.
Treatment
Although treatment, although prevention can be done in different ways. It is best to choose the option that the doctor will advise you. You can treat yourself with drugs (injections or pills), with the help of gymnastics, traditional medicine can also help you. And although the latter has not been confirmed, some patients report improvement after certain procedures, even if only prophylaxis was performed.
Treatment may include injections or tablets. The doctor considers many factors, such as pain, the extent of the disease, and which drugs the patient's body will accept best.
Chondroprotectors
There are many chondroprotectors - drugs that nourish the cartilage tissue, after which the destruction process stops, and then the cartilage tissue is restored. Often, doctors prescribe injections in the hip joint, believing that it is easier to treat this way. A big plus is that the injections are very effective and can treat some concomitant diseases. But you must remember that no more than three injections can be given per joint. And also a positive point, but a warning, injections should not be done often, the break between each procedure is at least two weeks.
How they work
First of all, these drugs are designed to restore cartilage tissue, which is so necessary for arthrosis. Therefore, these drugs are aimed at stopping the process of cartilage tissue degeneration. It cannot be said that chondroprotectors will have a positive effect only if you use them when there is arthrosis of the hip joint, at all. Chondroprotectors will be an excellent treatment for diseases of all types of joints.
Chondroprotectors include products of animal and plant origin (depending on the specific preparation), as well as other components that increase the production of collagen, hyaluronic acid, stimulate the production of chondroitin from cartilage tissue. All these components lead to the fact that the natural processes taking place in the cartilage tissue are maintained, its main functions are restored and, accordingly, joint pain disappears.
What is good for arthritis
When you go to a pharmacy looking for chondroprotectors, you will be surprised how many different names of the right medicine exist today, which actually do not differ much in their components. So, which chondroprotectors will be the best choice for osteoarthritis?
Undoubtedly, the best adviser in this matter will be your attending physician, who sees the picture of the disease from the outside and will be able to advise you (sometimes to choose) several drugs that are most suitable for your individual case. Do not take medication without consulting your doctor about this.
Pay attention to the fact that clinical trials are very important in this area, and these are mostly expensive and popular chondroprotectors. Their effectiveness has already been confirmed, and the possibility of allergic reactions has been minimized. Remember that the natural substances that make up chondroprotectors rarely cause an allergic reaction, most often the culprit is the additives that make up the medicine.
Contraindications
There is a group of people for whom chondroprotectors are contraindicated:
- It is forbidden to take medicines in pregnant and lactating women;
- Not to be used by children under 12 years of age;
- If a person has diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, then it is worth excluding drugs in the form of tablets and resorting to other methods of treatment;
- At certain stages, chondroprotectors will no longer have an effect, which is why in advanced cases they resort to other methods of treatment;
- Some drugs are individually intolerable and must be replaced by others.
Recommendations for use
It is impossible to say that only chondroprotectors will help to cure the disease. It pays to focus on the problems that caused your illness, not on the medication. Because if due to excessive physical stress you have received such injuries and hope that you can lead the same lifestyle and chondroprotectors will save you, then you are deeply mistaken. The possibility of spreading and aggravating the disease must be eliminated from all sides. Try to protect yourself from hypothermia as much as possible. Monitor what medications you are taking, if you have been prescribed medication for the treatment of another disease, ask your doctor if you need to change the course of treatment?
Treatment of arthrosis of the hip joint with gymnastics
Doctors recommend treating arthrosis of the hip joint with the help of special exercises. It is best not to resort to treatment and not to forget that there must be prevention of the disease. The very process of treatment of such diseases has never been fast, treatment with gymnastics is no exception in this case. Some believe that since these are not medications that need to be taken constantly, the classes can be skipped. Forget about it, this is your health, so doing gymnastics is a must.
The doctor's technique
It is worth noting that in the field of therapeutic gymnastics, the doctor's complex has proven itself well. The peculiarity of the doctor is that, unlike his colleagues, he did not turn to surgery and medical treatment of arthrosis, such as injections. His exercises are to help the body repair itself. The doctor's main method in the treatment of arthrosis is kinesitherapy, which means treatment through movement. According to his methodology, a separate program or rather a set of exercises is developed for each patient, where it is prescribed which simulators to use, which exercises to do and how. On the recommendation of the doctor, it is necessary to do the exercises correctly, the complex that he has developed. Even if a person knows what the exercises are, but does them incorrectly, then there will be no result. Correct execution of this or that exercise is important, or rather, it is important to repeat the entire complex.
This technique confirms that it is not drugs that heal us, we do it ourselves.
Implementation rules
Sometimes the injections do not give the desired effect, the treatment is exercised. Recommendations for implementation. If you notice the first symptoms and decide that it is best to treat yourself physically, you should remember a few rules:
- Exercises are not performed abruptly, everything should be smooth and measured;
- The joint should be developed, not put even more stress to worsen the symptoms of the disease;
- Remember that exercise helps if it is followed by a light massage;
- This treatment (exercises) is best done in a supine position.
For the effectiveness of physiotherapy exercises, a whole complex is carried out, which includes a variety of exercises.
You should monitor your health, do sports and consult a doctor at the first symptoms of the disease. After all, if the disease is detected in the early stages, then it will be much easier to cure or stop its development.