Joint pain isn't just a problem for the older generation. Young people are often faced with this. In some situations, painkillers are saved from unpleasant symptoms, in others drug treatment is required, and in the most difficult cases, the help of a surgeon is required.
Causes of joint pain
The causes of joint pain can be both mechanical and infectious. After an injury, no one is surprised by pain when moving. But when the pain occurs for no obvious reason, the patient doesn't understand what to do to get rid of the problem.
However, a bacterial infection can cause pain. When pathogens enter the synovial fluid, they invade nearby soft tissues. An infection can enter a joint in several ways:
- As a result of prosthetics, due to the poor quality of the materials sterilization.
- Due to deep tissue damage in skin infections;
- After any surgery performed in violation of the rules of antiseptic treatment.
In addition to bacteria, the joint is also threatened by fungi. These microorganisms also enter the synovial fluid as a result of an infection obtained during surgery.
Few people associate stomach upset or bladder damage with knee or elbow pain. However, there is a connection. When the gastrointestinal tract is affected by a bacterial infection, toxins and colonies of microorganisms enter the bloodstream and move through the body with the bloodstream. Some of them are deposited in the joint cavity. The joint risks are:
- diseases of the gastrointestinal tract;
- lesions of the urinary system;
- Venereal illnesses;
- rubella;
- angina;
- Infectious mononucleosis;
- pneumonia.
This suggests that improper treatment of infectious diseases can lead to more serious consequences than one might imagine. For example, a late diagnosed sore throat or a patient's refusal of prescribed antibiotics can lead to disability. This is due to the fact that strep, which causes angina, is recognized by the immune system in the same way as heart valve cells and intra-articular tissue. If antibiotic therapy is not used as the main treatment, the immune system itself will destroy the joint tissue, fighting the infection.
Viral infections also affect the joints. These are diseases such as:
- rubella;
- hepatitis C;
- hepatitis B;
- herpes.
Humanity has not yet invented a proven drug capable of fighting viruses. The only exception is the Acyclovir drug, which is effective against the herpes virus. Other diseases of viral etiology can be defeated only by human immunity. To protect yourself from infections that can destroy joint tissue, you can arm your immunity with vaccinations. Vaccinations against rubella and hepatitis are included in the mandatory schedule.
How to relieve pain
As a symptomatic treatment of joint pain, orthopedists use non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
In case of unbearable pain, you will need to consult a specialist who will block it. This is a procedure that allows you to introduce anesthesia into the joint itself and the area near the root of the nerve endings. But this solution to the problem is temporary. After 10-16 hours, the patient's condition will return to its original position.
What does the joint crunch say?
Joint creaking can be caused by several reasons. On the one hand, the creak indicates that the intra-articular substrate is depleted due to a violation of the salt-water balance. On the other hand, the one-off crunch that can be heard when bending or extending the joint to its extreme position is the sound produced by the gas bubbles bursting within the joint fluid.
If there is a constant creak during movement, it is necessary to reduce the load on the moving part. It is best to eliminate the cause through the office of an orthopedic traumatologist. Taking the advertised drugs alone not only doesn't help, but can also harm. X-rays will show the condition of the bones and inter-articular cartilage. If it is found that it is out of stock, individual recommendations will be given. If, with the developed cartilage, you independently obstruct the pain with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, it will only be possible to reduce the sensitivity in the joint, continuing to exploit it. Over time, thin cartilage becomes the cause of intra-articular tissue inflammation, which will lead to osteoarthritis.
Arthritis or osteoarthritis
For those without medical training or who have not personally experienced bone and joint problems, two concepts: arthritis and osteoarthritis seem to be exactly the same. The similarity of the names is explained by the fact that all diseases associated with the joints have the root "art". The suffix "it" speaks of an inflammatory process. This can be seen in other terms: rhinitis - inflammation of the sinuses, bronchitis - inflammation of the bronchi; otitis media - an inflammation of the ear. At the same time, the term does not talk about the causes of the inflammation, which means it cannot be a diagnosis. Bronchitis, for example, can be both viral and bacterial. This means that the treatment tactics in both cases are completely different. Arthritis is inflammation in a joint, without a description of the cause.
Osteoarthritis is a disease in which the interarticular cartilage is affected. Long-term unexplored arthritis sooner or later leads to osteoarthritis. Inflammatory processes in the joint disrupt metabolism, as a result of which the tissues do not receive proper nutrition and become thinner. Hence, the destruction of cartilage tissue occurs.
Joint disease prevention
Proper nutrition ensures the health of all body systems. An adequate amount of protein, calcium, iron and vitamins allows you to provide the cartilage tissue, ligaments, synovial fluid and bones with everything you need.
In addition, an active lifestyle will keep the muscles in good shape, thanks to which they provide additional support for the entire skeleton in general and the joints in particular. And to protect yourself from dangerous viral infections affecting the joints, you need to be vaccinated in a timely manner.