Diseases such as arthritis, arthrosis, joint problems inevitably come to mind. Indeed, both of these pathologies are directly related to the musculoskeletal system, since the pathological process is localized in the articular joints. Both arthritis and arthrosis have similar symptoms. Many patients confuse these diseases and consider them to be one and the same pathology, but they have major differences.
What is arthritis and arthrosis and how do they differ?
Arthritis and arthrosis are common diagnoses in elderly patients. To understand the differences between these two pathologies, let's consider what arthritis and arthrosis are and what is the difference between them.
A chronic disease of the joints in which their gradual deformation is observed is called arthrosis. A more correct name is osteoarthritis, because the pathological process involves not only cartilage, but eventually bone tissue as well.
The direct cause of the disease is damage to the surfaces of the joint, as a result of which they wear out and stop performing their functions. A typical manifestation of arthrosis is severe pain when moving the limb, as a result of the aggravation of the pathological process, the mobility of the joint is significantly limited. In an advanced stage, the joint may become immobile.
Osteoarthritis usually appears in people over the age of forty-five, but it can rarely affect the joints of younger people. The disease develops mainly in women, and it also affects people with congenital pathology of the extremities. Osteoarthritis is caused by excess weight, joint operations and injuries, for example, damage to the hip or knee joint. Endogenous factors such as poor nutrition or impaired blood circulation in the joint can also cause the disease.
Arthritis is an inflammatory pathology localized in the joint. This is the difference between arthritis and arthrosis. Inflammation can occur as a result of joint infection, injury, and degenerative changes in tissues. Like osteoarthritis, arthritis is characterized by joint pain that worsens with movement.
Lack of proper treatment leads to loss of joint mobility and its complete immobilization. Arthritis is easier to distinguish because inflammation causes redness and swelling of the skin at the site of the lesion. It should be noted that arthritis is not an isolated pathology. This is a systemic disease, not just the musculoskeletal system. Arthritis usually affects the liver, kidneys, and heart. This is the main difference between arthritis and local arthrosis.
Symbols
The symptoms of arthritis and arthrosis are mostly similar, but they also have significant differences. Pain is an important symptom that comes to the fore in both arthrosis and arthritis. The nature of the pain changes: patients with arthrosis experience negative sensations during physical activity, as well as when the load on the damaged joint increases.
At the initial stage, the pain may not be severe. Therefore, patients do not always pay attention to such symptoms and do not pay attention to the first signs of pathology. Pain subsides at rest. Only in the second and third stages is pain constantly present. But if you position the limb well, the pain will decrease. Arthritis pain does not decrease, and the highest peak of its development reaches the night, close to the morning.
It is a typical feature of brittle arthrosis and chronic arthritis.
A crisis occurs due to a decrease in the elasticity of the cartilage tissue and an increase in friction between the articular surfaces. At the initial stage, you can feel the crunch of the fingers, then the larger joints are affected. A distinctive feature of joint crackling is the rough, dry sound produced by the joint.
Limitation of mobility in one joint and stiffness in movements are typical symptoms of arthrosis and arthritis, but joint problems for arthrosis differ in localization, i. e. a certain joint is affected, and with arthritis - a systemic pathology - discomfort is noted not only in the joints, but in the whole body.
Articular deformities are observed in both pathologies, but have different characteristics. Changes with arthrosis affect only the joint itself, and the inflammatory process in arthritis causes changes in the skin - you can see swelling, redness and hyperthermia. In addition, arthritis is accompanied by general somatic pathology: the body temperature rises, a typical fever occurs, sweating increases, weakness and drowsiness appear. Conjunctivitis may begin and chronic diseases may become more complicated. There are no such symptoms with arthrosis, but if arthrosis has developed, inflammation will also accompany arthrosis.
The doctor must carefully distinguish between the symptoms of arthritis and arthrosis, so if negative symptoms appear, a consultation with a specialist is required.
Diagnostics
Correct diagnosis of arthritis or arthrosis is important to start treatment of the disease. This can be done using various research methods. Not all patients know which doctor deals with joint pathologies, so you can contact a rheumatologist or therapist at the initial stage, and then consult an orthopedist or surgeon.
Patients should undergo a blood test that will demonstrate general changes in the body. If the results of the blood test do not show any abnormalities, doctors tend to arthrosis as a preliminary diagnosis.
If the sedimentation rate of erythrocytes in the blood plasma increases, it is a clear sign of the inflammatory process, so rheumatoid arthritis is suspected. Typically, the speed increases above 25 mm/h. An additional confirmatory symptom will be joint pain that worsens at night. To be fair, we note that if an increase in ESR is accompanied by inflammation, it is also possible with arthrosis.
An additional argument in favor of rheumatoid arthritis will be an increase in the number of leukocytes. For rheumatological tests, blood is also taken from a vein - the appearance of a special marker - C-reactive protein, which indicates inflammation. However, you should not rely on only one blood test, because it is impossible to reliably identify one of the diseases using this analysis. It is necessary to conduct additional research, constantly taking into account the presence of inflammatory factors in the blood.
As additional tests, doctors prescribe the following to the patient:
- x-ray of the problem area;
- magnetic resonance imaging;
- computed tomography;
- radioisotope scanning.
Doctors take into account tests, a carefully collected medical history and blood test results, after which a diagnosis of a particular disease is made.
Treatment
For the treatment of arthritis and arthrosis to be successful, it is necessary to choose the right treatment strategy. It should be noted that it is not always possible to completely cure the disease, and in some cases long-term remission is considered a great success.
It is important to treat with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs to eliminate exacerbations and prevent disease relapses. Medicines have a particularly strong effect on the body with arthritis, and also affect the positive dynamics of arthrosis.
Features of the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are as follows:
- It is not recommended to take the medicine for a long time, even if it does not have negative effects;
- patients with pathology of the gastrointestinal tract, liver, kidney and heart disorders are prohibited from taking NSAIDs;
- Do not increase the dosage of drugs without the doctor's permission, because if individual sensitivity occurs, a negative reaction may occur;
- When taking medicines, you should take them with a large glass of water;
- When taking NSAIDs, it is forbidden to combine several drugs, as well as drink alcohol;
- It is forbidden to take NSAIDs during pregnancy.
When contacting a doctor, the patient will be prescribed effective treatment with the safest non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs after examination. Basically, all drugs in this group can be divided into cyclooxygenase inhibitors 1 and 2. COX-2 inhibitors are considered more faithful to the body drugs.
First and second generation inhibitors are included in many drugs. These are ointments, patches, gels and tablet preparations.
During treatment, drugs that eliminate muscle spasms - muscle relaxants will be useful. Typically, this often occurs in patients suffering from arthrosis or arthritis. With severe pain in the joints, the muscles experience severe tension and suffer from a lack of nutrition and oxygen with long-lasting discomfort, so it is very important to immediately eliminate the discomfort that accompanies the disease.
An indispensable condition during therapy is the normalization of metabolic processes. This becomes possible after the inflammation subsides and the muscle spasm is removed. Metabolic drugs for patients with arthritis and arthrosis are adenosine triphosphoric acid, inosine, adenosine phosphate, B vitamins, anabolic steroids.
A special series of drugs are prescribed to remove salts from arthrosis, as well as means to achieve optimal acid-base balance.
It is very important to take all the medicines recommended by your doctor in order to treat arthritis and arthrosis or to achieve continuous positive dynamics. Moreover, it should be done according to the regimen prescribed by the doctor, because even the most effective metabolic agents will simply be useless against the background of an active inflammatory process.
Traditional treatment
Diseases such as arthritis and arthrosis can be treated not only with traditional medicines, but also with folk remedies. Massages with preparations based on natural substances will be useful. These are bee and snake venom ointments. These preparations also include essential oils. During the massage, you can add eucalyptus and ginger oil, ginger, marjoram, rosemary or juniper oil.
Hot baths for arthritis and arthrosis have a good relaxing effect. They will help relieve muscle pain and fatigue and help relax the body as a whole. The best ingredients are one drop of ginger oil and the same amount of benzoin styrax, or two drops of marjoram and black pepper oil to one tablespoon of olive oil. Add 15-20 drops to the bath. If the patient has arthrosis of the feet, the prescription helps well. Oil baths can be done every evening at night.
Black poplar also gives a great effect. Not all patients know how to treat arthritis and arthrosis with black poplar, but it is very simple to do. It is necessary to collect rotten, young leaves and shoots from a healthy tree - about half a bucket, after which they are all poured over the edge of the container with boiling water and kept overnight. In the morning, the liquid is carefully poured into the bath, leaving the cake and soaking for half an hour. After the bath, it is recommended to warm yourself up and lie in bed for an hour.
Folk remedies help a lot even if the patient is affected by arthrosis - a severe combination of bone deformations with an inflammatory process in the articular joint. For treatment, you need to take a glass of spruce needles and fill it with two liters of water. The product should be boiled for fifteen minutes, after which the broth is poured into the bath and the water is removed until it cools completely.
Senna leaves will help with arthritis and arthrosis. If the patient regularly treats the disease with this remedy, the inflammation disappears quickly. Senna is used as follows: two cups of dry components are poured with one liter of boiling water and sealed for forty minutes. Then the liquid is poured into the bath, where sea salt is added and the water is taken until it reaches the optimal temperature. After the bath, the damaged areas due to arthrosis or arthritis are treated with fir oil and wrapped with a scarf.
Prevention
As preventive measures, doctors give the following recommendations to patients:
- completely treat all infectious pathologies, do not interrupt the course of therapy with antibacterial drugs in order not to leave inflammatory pockets in the body;
- follow a balanced diet;
- wear comfortable shoes that do not restrict your feet;
- getting rid of excess weight, which creates additional stress on the extremities;
- do not overcool your feet, be careful in humid weather and cold seasons;
- protect yourself from injuries and use special bandages, supports and elastic bandages while playing active sports;
- do daily gymnastics, take walks in the fresh air to activate blood circulation in the body, and when the first signs of arthritis or arthrosis are detected, do special joint gymnastics - exercises for hands, ankles, knees.
Arthritis and arthrosis are severe damage to the articular surfaces. If it is not treated correctly or in time, it can cause disability, so doctors strongly recommend to consult a doctor at the first signs of the disease.