Osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease of cartilage tissue that can affect the joints of the vertebrae and all bones of the skeleton.The hip joint (HJ) is the largest and most stressed bone joint.Therefore, coxarthrosis (deforming arthropathy of the hip joint) is a very common cause of disability in patients over 50 years of age.
Coxarthrosis (arthropathy of the hip joint): symptoms
Reasons
The causes of coxarthrosis vary.This pathology can lead to:
- Age-related dystrophic changes in cartilage.
- Continuous physical activity among athletes and carrying heavy loads over a number of years.
- Congenital malformation.
- TJ injuries.
- Necrosis of the femoral head (Perthes disease).
The head of the femur, covered with elastic cartilage, is located in the acetabulum of the pelvic bones.
There are unilateral lesions (when the disease affects one joint) and bilateral lesions - when both surfaces of the hip joint are affected.
Arthritis symptoms of the hip joint
When diagnosed, the following hip arthritic symptoms are observed:
- Thinning of the cartilage, it becomes dry and rough.
- Thickening of the underlying bone, its growth on the sides.
- Fibrosis and inflammation of the joint capsule.
- The appearance of an inflammatory exudate in the capsule.
- Stiffness of the joint, appearance of contractions.
Externally, these changes are manifested by the following symptoms:
- Joint pain, radiating to groin, hip and knee.
- The initial (morning) symptom of pain that subsides after warming up.
- A stiff, uncertain, limping gait.
- Bringing the leg to the affected side (the reason is the contraction).
- Weakness and atrophy of the thigh muscle.
- A tingling in the joint.
Stages of the disease
Based on the signs and symptoms, three stages of the disease are distinguished:
First
- Discomfort and pain, which usually subside with rest.
- Absence of external symptoms - lameness, stiffness, atrophy.
Such signs do not particularly worry patients, and few people pay attention to episodic pain, much less begin to treat it.
But right at the initial stage, arthropathy of the hip joint is still a reversible disease.
Second degree
- Painful symptoms become more intense and can persist even at rest.
- The functional characteristics of the hip joint are reduced:
- limitations in hip abduction and internal rotation occur
- lameness is observed
- X-rays show:
- marginal osteophytes?
- deformation of the head and change in its outline.
- reduction of joint space.
Third stage
- The pain becomes constant and the most excruciating night pain also begins.
- The patient is forced to rely on a cane.
- There is a sharp limitation of movements and atrophy of the gluteal, thigh and calf muscles.
- There is noticeable shortening of the leg and lameness.
- Due to overgrown osteophytes, the joint space practically disappears, fusion and complete loss of function of the hip joint occurs.
It happens that the first attack occurs at a fairly young age - in the early forties.A person probably forgets and remembers it already at the age of 50-60, when the deformations in the joint become significant, affecting the quality of life.
Diagnostics
An x-ray and functional diagnosis is done.The orthopedist not only deciphers the image, but also rotates, bends the femur in all directions and studies the symptoms that appear when walking.
However, increasingly, if a patient is suspected of having a coxarthrosis of the hip joint, leading specialists refer for diagnostics using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).The explanation for this is the absolute safety and high information content of the process.It is MRI that makes it possible to detect the slightest changes in the hip joint at an early stage, which contributes to the development of the most effective treatment tactics.
Treatment of coxarthrosis of the hip joint
Treatment is carried out according to the principle "the earlier the better".
Early coxarthrosis can be treated with:
- Carboprotectors.
- Light physical therapy - swimming, aerobics, walking and cycling.
- Setting of allowable physical loads on the joint.
- Weight correction (downwards).
- Physiotherapy treatment
- Extraction processes.
- Massage sessions.
- Compression in the area of pain.
Painful symptoms can be relieved with NSAIDs.
Annual treatment at the sanatorium is also very effective.
Pain-relieving intra-articular corticosteroid injections can be used to treat more severe pain in the later stages.
Treating coxarthrosis at a later stage is very difficult due to the complete obliteration of the hip joint.Chondroprotectors in this case are absolutely useless.
All kinds of external treatments in the form of ointments and gels can relieve muscle spasms and pain, but, of course, will not in any way affect the condition of the affected immobilized joint.Therefore, you need to take a logical approach to all kinds of advertising that ensures that by smearing the sore spot with ointment, you can soon forget about the disease.
Hip replacement
The only option for complete restoration of the hip joint in the third stage of coxarthrosis is surgery – endoprosthetic (arthroplasty) of the hip joint.
The endoprosthesis consists of two components: a head and a cup.
This operation is not easy:
- After the operation, a long recovery period is required.
- Joint healing is painful (pain may persist for a year).
- You should walk for some time with the help of a walker or using a cane as support.