Joint pain is not just a problem of the older generation. Young people often face this. In some cases, painkillers relieve unpleasant symptoms, in others, medication is required, and in the most difficult cases, the help of a surgeon is needed.
Causes of joint pain
Causes of joint pain can be both mechanical and infectious. No one is surprised by the pain when moving after an injury. However, when the pain occurs for no apparent reason, the patient does not understand how to act 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 the joint in several ways:
- As a result of prosthetics, due to poor sterilization of materials.
- Due to deep tissue damage in skin infections;
- After any surgical intervention 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 infection acquired during surgery.
Few people associate stomach ailments or bladder damage with knee or elbow pain. Nevertheless, there is a connection. When the gastrointestinal tract is affected by a bacterial infection, colonies of toxins and microorganisms enter the bloodstream and pass through the body through the bloodstream. Some of them are placed in the joint space. The common risks are:
- diseases of the gastrointestinal tract;
- lesions of the urinary system;
- venereal diseases;
- velvet;
- angina;
- infectious mononucleosis;
- pneumonia.
This suggests that improper treatment of infectious diseases can lead to more serious consequences than previously thought. For example, a late-diagnosed sore throat or a patient's refusal to prescribe antibiotics can lead to disability. This is due to the fact that the streptococci that cause angina are recognized by the immune system as cells from the heart valves and intraarticular tissues. When antibiotic therapy is not used as the main treatment, the immune system itself will destroy the joint tissue by fighting the infection.
Viral infections also affect the joints. These are the following diseases:
- velvet;
- hepatitis C;
- Hepatitis b;
- herpes.
Mankind has not yet developed a proven effective drug to fight viruses. The only exception is Acyclovir, which is effective against the herpes virus. Other diseases of viral etiology can be defeated only by human immunity. You can arm your immunity with vaccines to protect yourself from infections that can destroy joint tissues. Mandatory schedule includes rubella and hepatitis vaccines.
How to relieve pain
As a symptomatic treatment for joint pain, orthopedists use non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
In case of unbearable pain, you should consult a specialist who prevents it. This is a procedure that allows anesthesia to enter the joint itself and the root zone of the nerve endings. However, this solution to the problem is temporary. After 10-16 hours, the patient's condition will return to its previous state.
What does the crack in the joints say?
Joint irritation can occur for several reasons. On the one hand, the crisis indicates the depletion of the intraarticular substrate as a result of water-salt imbalance. On the other hand, the one-time squeak that can be heard when bending or overturning a joint is the sound of gas bubbles exploding inside the joint fluid.
If there is a constant crisis during the movement, it is necessary to reduce the load on the moving part. It is better to eliminate the cause through the office of an orthopedic traumatologist. Taking the advertised drugs on your own will not only help, but also harm. X-rays will show the condition of the bones and intervertebral cartilage. If it turns out to be exhausted, individual recommendations will be given. If you are blocking pain with advanced cartilage, independently of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, it will only be possible to reduce joint sensitivity while continuing to use it. Over time, thin cartilage causes inflammation of the intraarticular tissue, which can lead to osteoarthritis.
Arthritis or osteoarthritis
For those who do not have a medical education or who have not personally experienced bone and joint problems, the two concepts are the same: arthritis and osteoarthritis. The similarity of the names is explained by the fact that at the root of all diseases associated with the joints is "art". The suffix "this" refers to an inflammatory process. This can be seen in other ways: rhinitis - inflammation of the sinuses, bronchitis - inflammation of the bronchi; otitis media - inflammation of the ear. At the same time, the term does not refer to the causes of inflammation, ie it cannot be diagnosed. For example, bronchitis can be both viral and bacterial. This means that in both cases the treatment tactics are completely different. Arthritis is an inflammation of the joint without describing the cause.
Osteoarthritis is a disease that affects the cartilage between the joints. Prolonged unexplained arthritis sooner or later leads to osteoarthritis. Joint inflammatory processes disrupt metabolism, so the tissues are not properly nourished and thinned. Thus, the destruction of cartilage tissue occurs.
Prevention of joint diseases
Proper nutrition ensures the health of all body systems. Adequate amounts of protein, calcium, iron and vitamins provide cartilage tissue, ligaments, synovial fluid and bones with everything they need.
In addition, an active lifestyle will keep the muscles in good condition, which will provide additional support to the entire skeleton in general, and joints in particular. And you need to be vaccinated in time to protect yourself from dangerous viral infections that affect the joints.