Osteoarthritis is a most chronic joint condition where two bones come together with a cartilage cover. The protective cartilage that cushions the bone ends, wears down with some time. Cartilage is a rubber-like tissue that provides lubrication that tends the joint to move easily and painlessly. The breakdown of cartilage causes discomfort in the joints. However, it can damage joints that affect the knees, hips, spine, and hands. Osteoarthritis causes pain and stiffness in the joints affecting mainly older age group people. The hip and knee arthritis gives pain in bone joints, groin, and near adjoining front areas of the thigh.
The symptoms can be managed by staying active and maintaining a healthy weight. Some treatments have a slow progression that improves pain with time. Stiffness gets worst with periods of inactivity. However, it can affect the person to an extent that it enables him to walk.
Treatment Options for Hip & Knee Osteoarthritis
- Physical Therapy: The physical therapists assess the physical conditions of the patients who have problems in mobility. They set exercises according to their hip and knee problems so that they can walk. The therapists suggest the exercises so that they can safely continue at their home also.
- Medications: People with osteoarthritis experience intense pain. So to give them relief they are given pain-relieving tablets. To slow down the progression of osteoarthritis certain drugs are prescribed in the prescription slip.
- Surgery: The hip and knee replacement surgeries help to replace the damaged or missing joint cartilage with durable prosthetics. The prosthetics are made up of a combination of synthetic materials which are replaced around the bones to create spaces between the joints which finally relieves the pressure on the body. As a result, there is pain relief, and mobility is increased.
Some Risk Factors Involved in Hip & Knee Osteoarthritis
- Age is the major factor involved in osteoarthritis because its risk gets increased as you grow up. As women grow, there is wear and tear of bones involved which results in osteoarthritis.
- Obesity plays a major role in developing osteoarthritis. The more you weigh greater is the risk involved. Increased weight adds extra stress on your hips and knees. The tissues cause wear and tear with the time that causes inflammation. However, with age, the risk gets so high that in later stages it results in surgeries.
- Joint Injuries and bone deformities involve the major risk factors in osteoarthritis. The injuries formed during the early stages of life results in osteoarthritis in later stages.
Wrapping Up
Osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease that has no cure so it can be treated with a combination of physical therapies and medicines. The hip and knee arthritis shows the symptoms of sharp pain. As a result, hip & knee osteoarthritis focuses on reducing inflammation which results in reducing pain. However, the only cure to these pains is getting indulged in physical activities that add mobility to the person that they can easily walk. When medications and exercising don't give relief then you should undergo hip & knee replacement surgeries. However, that will be the permanent cure to it.
Read More Here About 5 Conditions When You Need To See a Sports Injury Specialist.
