Osteoarthritis is one of the most common joint diseases. This disease mainly affects older people.
What is knee osteoarthritis?
Osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease of the joints that is accompanied by the gradual destruction of the cartilage inside the joint. The patient has severe pain in the joints, mobility is limited. Such people find it difficult to get around and find it difficult to do usual household chores. When the cartilage wears down, the joint loses its ability to move.
The main symptom is pain during certain activities:
- When climbing the stairs.
- When lifting loads.
- While squatting.
- When you suddenly stop after a long walk.
The pain may worsen before bedtime, and swelling of the knee occurs at night. Fluid buildup in the joint can also occur.
treatment at home
The consequence of complex treatment of arthrosis should be permanent remission. Complex therapy of arthrosis combines treatment with therapeutic exercises and physiotherapy.
The goal of osteoarthritis treatment is the elimination of the pain syndrome and the subsequent activation of cartilage tissue regeneration. During this period, drugs that contain chondroitin and glucosamine in their composition will be very helpful. These medicines can be used in the form of tablets, ointments, sprays. The duration of treatment can be very long, up to a year.
During training, movements are performed that do not damage cartilage tissue, but contribute to recovery.
All this helps only in the first stage of arthrosis. In the second and third stages, surgical intervention is required.
Medical treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee joint at home includes:
- Painkiller. Medicines for pain relief: tablets, ointments, sprays. Anesthetic tablets can also be used.
- Drugs that relax muscles. Medications that promote muscle relaxation reduce spasms.
- Chondroprotectors - "cartilage protectors". These drugs are the basis for the treatment of osteoarthritis.
All drugs must be prescribed by a doctor, you should not take them without a prescription, they all have contraindications.
therapeutic exercises
Exercises should be selected by an orthopedist, building on the specifics of the disease. The most effective exercises for osteoarthritis:
- Lie on your back, straighten your legs and relax. Exercise relieves stress, strengthens the pelvic muscles. Increases blood flow to the knee joint.
- Lie on your back, raise your legs perpendicular to your body and press them firmly into the floor. Wave your legs in the air and mimic cycling.
- Lie on your stomach, alternately twist your knees. This exercise strengthens the leg muscles and activates the metabolic processes in the knee joints.
- A person sits in a chair and raises their legs parallel to the floor. As a result, the blood rises to the knees and improves tissue regeneration in the joints.
A positive result of the above exercises is when you do them regularly. It is best to do 15 minutes a day alternating with massage and physiotherapy.
In order to be able to play various sports, running, walking, it is better to use an orthopedic knee brace that relieves the load on the knee joint, treats arthrosis - warms it, has a magnetic pad that promotes blood circulation. This is a necessary purchase for osteoarthritis of the knee joint.
With any osteoarthritis, you need to change your lifestyle and diet. For the treatment to be effective, sugar, alcoholic beverages, spicy and fatty foods, and chemical additives must be eliminated from the diet. Starvation is not recommended so as not to impair the supply of food to the joint cells.
Folk methods of treatment
The most common folk remedies for the treatment of arthrosis of the knee joint:
- Application of chalk and kefir. It is necessary to make these components into a homogeneous mass, which is applied and fixed on the knee for the night.
- Apply oatmeal - prepare oatmeal and apply to the leg in the evening.
- A strawberry sauce. In this case, strawberry leaves are used, preferably in dried form. First you should chop the leaves. Then put in boiling water and cook for 20 minutes. It is advisable to take this remedy throughout the day instead of water.
- Jump. Take 2 tablespoons of hops and mix them with 50 g of vegetable oil. Use as a compress.
- Mix 1 tablespoon of mustard, 1 tablespoon of honey and 1 tablespoon of olive oil, boil (at least 5 minutes) and apply to affected joints for two hours.
- A good anesthetic is a tincture of agave leaves and alcohol in a 1: 10 ratio. Let this mixture brew in the refrigerator for a month. Use 20-30 drops in the morning, afternoon and evening.
- Burdock, along with other plants, has proven itself very well in the treatment of arthrosis. Take 6 freshly picked burdock leaves, velvety side down. Top with a heavy bowl of boiled water. After 30 minutes the leaves can be used. The affected area is smeared with vegetable oil and smeared with burdock leaves and wrapped in foil.
- How to Use Dandelion Freshly picked dandelion flowers, regardless of their unpleasant taste, should be rinsed with cold water and chewed. At least 4 flowers should be eaten per day. Dried dandelion leaves can also be used as food.
- You can apply sea salt compress to the sore knee. When the salt is over at the right time, you can replace it with ordinary sand, which before use is heated and wrapped in a towel. This tool will help fight swelling.
Use of horseradish
Horseradish leaves and roots are rich in vitamins, natural phytoncides, minerals and essential oils. How to treat osteoarthritis with horseradish:
- Cut and boil the root. The resulting suspension is applied to gauze and fixed to the knee. Place the fabric on top and leave the compression on for half an hour. You can do this every day.
- Mix equal parts horseradish and apple cider vinegar, add some flaxseed oil and apply on the sore joint. Cover with cellophane and keep 30 minutes. Repeat the process every other day.
- Fry the horseradish and then mix it with the same amount of yoghurt. Apply the resulting mass to the problem area and cover with cling film. Hold for 30-40 minutes and then rinse off with warm water. To get the maximum result, you need to do at least 7 procedures.