The knee is a large and complex joint of the human body, which bears a large load. Quite often he is injured and suffers from various diseases. Almost everyone has experienced knee pain at least once in their life, so you can imagine how painful the feeling of limited mobility in the lower extremities is.
Many diseases of the knees have similar symptoms, but the causes are different for everyone. Only a qualified doctor can make the correct diagnosis and prescribe the appropriate treatment. Consider the most common diseases of the knee joints, their causes and treatment.
Causes of diseases
Bruises, injuries, sprains and many other diseases of the joints of the legs of the knee at least once in a lifetime occurred in every person. Acute pain can be provoked by one awkward movement when doing summer work or cleaning the house, and inchildhood, probably, everyone broke their knees. All this subsequently leads to the emergence of a variety of diseases, entailing changes in the tissues of the joint, an inflammatory process of an infectious nature, and a violation of metabolic processes.
Poor circulation in the knee joint can result from uneven growth of blood vessels, usually occurring during adolescence. Since the growth of the body, organs and systems do not keep pace with each other, an imbalance occurs that causes disturbances in the functioning of the knee joint.
Acute and chronic diseases of the elbow, hip and other joints can go to the knee. In this case, a doctor's consultation is required, because such a condition is quite capable of leading to disability.
The most dangerous cause of knee disease is infections that are asymptomatic in the body. A person does not experience any discomfort, and when the inflammatory process loudly announces itself, it is often too late. Therefore, you need to be very careful about your joints in order to avoid treatment, and not always effective.
Symptoms
Knee diseases and their symptoms vary. Some people immediately run to the doctor after they get minor scratches on the knee joints, fearing complications. Others can endure pain for a long time, and they get to the hospital when they can no longer move normally. Therefore, experts advise as soon as possible to contactdoctor when the following symptoms appear:
- continuous sharp or aching pain in the knee joint;
- tightness or swelling in the knee area;
- impaired joint mobility;
- crunching and clicking in the area of the knee joint.
Features of inflammatory and degenerative diseases
Knee pain due to arthritis, bursitis and tendinitis is often accompanied by fever because these diseases are inflammatory. The knee area or a separate part of it begins to swell, becomes hot, and if you press it, severe pain occurs. In addition, the body temperature rises and other symptoms appear that are characteristic of the inflammatory process. Such signs are determined by a general blood test. Usually, inflammatory diseases have an acute onset.
Dystrophic diseases (osteoarthritis, tendopathy, arthrosis, meniscopathy and others) are usually congenital or hereditary and always develop gradually. They can also occur due to chronic pathologies of the joints or metabolic disorders. Such knee diseases usually have a chronic course with an increase in symptoms. They can last for years with alternating periods of exacerbations and remissions. The treatment of these pathologies is quite lengthy.
Let's consider the most common diseases of the knee joint
Arthritis and arthrosis
These two diseases of the human knee have a similar clinical presentation but differ in nature.
Arthrosis is characterized by a dystrophic lesion of cartilage tissue. It happens prematurely and occurs due to hereditary predisposition, excessive physical activity, and maybe age. Osteoarthritis knee disease mainly affects the elderly, because pain is usually associated with age-related wear and tear of cartilage tissues.
Arthritis can occur in both the elderly and the young. This is the most common chronic knee disease. Rheumatoid arthritis is usually accompanied by autoimmune processes. The disease can occur in acute and chronic forms. Usually the pathology is chronic and lasts for years, often leading to disability.
Signs of arthritis:
- knee joint becomes stiff;
- there is reddening of the skin at the site of inflammation;
- there is swelling and swelling of the knee;
- pain occurs in the knee joint when moving.
Bursitis
Knee diseases can develop as a result of various lesions of the musculoskeletal system. This causes inflammation of the tendon or joint capsule. Bursitis is often characterized as a complication of arthritis, when infection enters from the joint cavity into the joint capsule itself. And it happens the other way around, when bursitis causes the development of arthritis.
Pain with this disease is pronounced, constant and appears even without movement in the joint, because the inflammatory fluid or pus stretches the capsule and affects its nerve endings. bigaccumulation of fluid causes severe pain. Bursitis of small tendon capsules may be called a cyst. The pain in this case is not very strong, but it is acute and appears in a certain place. A lump can be felt in the affected area under the skin.
Tendinitis
This is an inflammation of the ligaments and tendons, caused by improper formation of the tendons of the knee or their weakness. Pain and swelling occur in the affected area. Strengthening of the painful syndrome occurs due to muscle contraction, as well as extension and flexion of the knee. Usually the pain radiates to the muscles of the lower leg or thigh.
Osteochondritis dissecans
With this disease, some part of the cartilage begins to separate from the adjacent bone and shifts into the joint cavity. The causes of this pathological condition have not been fully identified. This disease usually affects young people and is initially manifested by moderate aching pain in the knee joint. During and after physical exertion, it intensifies. After a while, the pathology begins to progress, swelling of the joint occurs, pain intensifies.
Chondropathy, meniscopathy, tendinopathy
Such diseases of the joints of the legs and knees are characterized by dystrophic and post-traumatic non-inflammatory lesions of the tissues of the knee joint. They can occur on their own, but most often accompany arthrosis. At the very beginning of their development, these pathologies rarely cause discomfort, so patients go to the doctor with an already advanced disease. Such diseases differ from arthrosis in a narrower localization, affecting either the meniscus, or cartilage, orligaments, tendons and other joint structures. Often this pathology occurs in athletes.
Such knee diseases have the following symptoms:
- pain when extending or bending the leg;
- if you step on a sore foot, it bends involuntarily;
- crunching in the affected joint.
An accurate diagnosis based on clinical manifestations is very difficult and requires examinations such as knee x-rays, magnetic resonance and computed tomography, arthroscopy.
Osgood-Schlatter disease
Some knee problems may only occur in certain populations, such as teenagers. They may develop Osgood-Schlatter disease (osteochondrosis of the tibia). Increased pain and swelling occurs while running or jumping, and decreases at rest. Often the pathology affects adolescents involved in basketball, hockey, gymnastics, football, volleyball, figure skating, ballet.
Usually, the disease affects only one joint, and a painful bump appears at the bottom of the patella. Osteochondrosis of the tibia begins to progress during puberty, as the child is growing rapidly at this time. It usually affects boys over the age of 13.
Other diseases of the knee joints
There are quite a few diseases of the knee joint, some of which are rare. These include:
- Synovitis. In this case, inflammation of the synovial membrane occurs, which leads to the accumulation of fluid in the joint cavity.
- Articular mouse. The fragment is located freely in the joint cavity and causes severe pain, as well as problems with movement.
- Vascular pain. They occur as a result of problems with blood circulation.
- Goff's disease. Inflammation of fatty tissue occurs in the knee joint.
- Chondromalacia of the patella. With such a pathology, cartilage tissue is damaged in the patella.
- Gout. It is a severe form of arthritis where uric acid crystals form in the knee joint.
This is just a small list of diseases that occur in the knee area. They all have common symptoms: swelling, pain, redness, so their treatment has similar points.
Diseases of the knee joints: treatment
If the doctor, after the examination, made the correct diagnosis, then the next step will be the appointment of competent treatment. The main thing is to eliminate the cause of pain and restore the function and structure of the tissues of the joint. Complex therapy is represented by anti-inflammatory drugs, chondroprotectors, as well as drugs that increase immunity. In addition, if there is a disease of the knee joints, the treatment includes physiotherapy, therapeutic diet, manual therapy, massage, physiotherapy exercises.
There is a heavy load on the knee joints. They take part in the movements and withstand the weight of a person. Overweight people often suffer from diseases of the knee joints. If the doctor has prescribed a special diet for the patient, then in this case he is forbidden to eat sweet, starchy, spicy, spicy and s alty foods. Losing weight also reduces knee pain.
During treatment, it is important to perform therapeutic exercises. Striking results are brought by exercises performed in water. Such a comprehensive effect on the muscles improves blood circulation in the tissues of the cartilage of the joint. Therapeutic exercises should be continued even after the condition improves for preventive purposes.
Physiotherapy
If knee problems occur, treatment may include physical therapy. Such procedures are necessary to strengthen the muscles of the injured knee, while their condition becomes more stable. Often, doctors prescribe exercise bike classes that are held in the gym.
If inflammation in the knee joint is just beginning to develop, you should perform as many movements as possible for the affected knee. Then pay attention to exercises for the thighs and lower leg, gradually increasing the load. When the patient begins to recover, begin to perform exercises aimed at all muscle groups.
To cure any disease of the knee joint, physiotherapy must be carried out for a whole month for two hours a day. If this is not enough, then the treatment is extended for another month. Depending on the type of pathology and the degree of neglect, the doctor determines the duration of the classes. At the end of the course, to prevent illness, it is recommended to continue to perform certain exercises.
Surgery
As already mentioned, problems with the knee joints require complex treatment. Some situations call for surgery. Interestingly, doctors forbid the operation until the swelling and swelling of the knee joint disappears. Therefore, first, procedures are carried out that eliminate such symptoms, and then only surgical intervention is performed.
Conclusion
Thus, it is important to timely identify the cause of the disease of the knee joint, as neglected pathology sometimes leads to disability. It is impossible to allow the transition of the disease to a chronic form, because in this case the treatment will be carried out much longer. When the first symptoms of the disease appear, you should seek medical help as soon as possible.
