Both arthritis and arthrosis affect the joints, and since it is the joint pain that makes the patient go to the doctor in the hope of recovery, he does not see the difference between these diseases.Arthritis, arthrosis - why these intricacies?Write some pills, the pain will go away!
But there is one difference, and it is often very important for further treatment: arthritis and arthrosis differ in the nature of the disease and the causes of the disease.
To better understand this difference, rememberhow it works together.
In a typical case, the joint consists of two bones, the heads of which are covered with a special sliding material - hyaline cartilage.This makes it easier for the bones to rub together.Synovial fluid works for the same task: the bones are not closely adjacent to each other, there is a small space between them, which is filled with this fluid.The point of contact between the synovial fluid and the bones that make up the joint is isolated from other organs and tissues by the articular capsule, which consists of dense connective tissue.
In arthritis, it is the cartilage that is inflamed;intra-articular cartilage suffers in arthrosis.
What is arthritis?
Arthritis is a common nameinflammatoryco-morbidities.During arthritis, the synovium of the joint is inflamed and the connective tissues of the body are affected.Arthritis can be caused by immune disorders, infections, or injuries.As a rule, it is accompanied by pain, swelling, redness and limited mobility of the joints.Arthritis is characterized by "flying" joint pain - bothering one joint, then another.Arthritis can develop at any age, even in teenagers (called juvenile arthritis).Advanced arthritis can be complicated by wear and tear of the cartilage within the joint (arthrosis).
What is arthrosis?
Arthrosis is a chronic diseasedegenerativejoint disease characterized by progressive wear and tear of cartilage tissue.It can occur in any joint, but the knees, hips, shoulders, and wrists are most commonly affected because these are the joints that experience the most stress.Arthrosis causes pain, stiffness and deterioration of joint mobility;pain always affects the same joint or the same group of joints.Arthrosis is characteristic of elderly patients, although the first signs of this disease can be found in people in their thirties.
Thus, the main difference between arthritis and arthrosis is in the causes of their occurrence and manifestations.Arthritis is associated with inflammation of the joints, while arthrosis is associated with degeneration and wear of cartilage tissue.It is important to note that these two conditions, although they have different mechanisms of development, are related to each other, because inflammatory processes can contribute to the degradation of intra-articular cartilage, i.e. arthrosis, and the erosion of hyaline cartilage can trigger secondary inflammation in the joint.
Causes of arthritis and arthrosis
Reasonsarthritiscan be:
- Rheumatic diseases (systemic lupus erythematosus, ankylosing spondylitis, etc.).
- Reaction to a trigger pathogen (usually bacteria that cause intestinal or sexually transmitted diseases): the body cannot stop in time, and even though the infection has already been defeated, the immune system continues to attack, now affecting its own joint tissue.
- The entry of pathogens into the joint cavity as a result of injury or through lymph and blood flow.
- Capillary blood entering the joint cavity due to injury.
- Arthrosis (inflammation of the joints as a complication).
Reasonsarthrosiscan be:
- Excess weight, which increases the stress on the joints of the legs.
- Heavy physical labor.
- Sedentary lifestyle.
- Joint instability due to ligament and tendon damage.
- Old age.
- Joint surgery.
- Congenital features of the body.
- Arthritis (hyaline cartilage begins to deteriorate due to inflammatory processes in the joint).
Often, arthrosis does not arise from one cause, but from a combination of them.
Clinical signs of arthritis and arthrosis
Joint pain with arthrosis and arthritis is different.
Acute arthritis is characterized by:
- Significant redness of the skin around the affected joint.
- Severe swelling in the affected area.
- The joint hurts both during movement and at rest.
- Prolonged morning stiffness (about an hour).
- General poor health: weakness, low performance, body aches, sweating and sometimes fever.
Arthrosis is characterized by:
- Joint pain mainly during movement.
- Difficulty performing normal activities (for example, it is painful to climb stairs with knee osteoarthritis).
- Relatively short-term morning stiffness (up to half an hour).
- Onset pain: when the patient goes from rest to activity, the joint bothers him for a while, but it passes quickly.
- In the later stages of the disease, extraneous sounds (clicks, creaks, creaks)./li>
- Narrowing of the joint space and/or bone deformation can be observed during palpation of the joint (in the later stages of the disease, the deformation is simply visible to the eye).
- If the patient suffers from arthrosis for a long time and secondary inflammation develops, swelling of the diseased joint.
Radiography will help to make the diagnosis accurately.With arthritis, there will be no pathological changes in the image, but with arthrosis, you can see a decrease in the height of the joint cavity or even bone growth.
Treatment of arthritis and arthrosis
Arthritis treatmentit will vary depending on the type of disease and the causes that lead to it.This may include:
- antibiotics;
- immunomodulatory drugs;
- non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs);
- corticosteroids (if NSAIDs are not effective enough).
When inflammation can be eliminated, physical therapy is also used to maintain joint function and physiotherapy, including.exposure to magnetic fields.
Treatment of arthrosisit is also comprehensive and includes both medicinal and non-medicinal methods.
The most commonly used drugs are NSAIDs, often in the form of gels and ointments.
Among the non-drug methods for arthrosis, exercise therapy, massage and magnetic therapy are recommended.
A course of exposure to magnetic fields with specially selected parameters for arthrosis allows:
- relieve pain, secondary inflammation and swelling;
- improve the nutrition of the diseased joint and thus slow down the development of the disease;
- prolong periods without flare-ups.
Things to remember:
- The difference between arthritis and arthrosis lies in the causes of their occurrence and manifestations.Arthritis is associated with inflammation of the joints, while arthrosis is associated with degeneration and wear of cartilage tissue.Arthritis and arthrosis are related because inflammatory processes can contribute to the degradation of intra-articular cartilage, and wear and tear of hyaline cartilage can trigger secondary inflammation in the joint.
- Acute arthritis is characterized by swelling and redness of the skin around the affected joint, pain both during movement and at rest, prolonged morning stiffness and deterioration of the patient's general health.Arthritis is characterized by joint pain during movement, difficulty in performing normal activities, short-term morning stiffness and onset pain;swelling of the joint is possible (with the development of secondary inflammation).In addition, with arthritis, there will be no pathological changes in the X-ray image, but with arthrosis, there will be a decrease in the height of the joint cavity.
- Treatment of both arthritis and arthrosis should be comprehensive.Depending on the cause of the arthritis, your doctor may recommend antibiotics, immunomodulators, NSAIDs, or corticosteroids.When the inflammation is removed, exercise therapy and magnetic therapy are added.NSAIDs, exercise therapy, massage and magnetic therapy are used for arthrosis.