What is the difference between Perthes disease in children?

Perthes disease in children implies such an ailment in which there is a temporary violation of the blood supply in the femur. After that, in the absence of proper blood flow, the femoral head tissue (spongy and cartilage) is destroyed. According to experts, Perthes disease in children occurs between the ages of four to about 10 years. It is noteworthy that this disease in boys is diagnosed about five times more often, according to available data.

Perthes disease Causes

Unfortunately, the true factors leading to the development of this disease are currently unknown. Some doctors claim that the common cause of frequent colds and injuries. There is also information that the cause is a congenital dislocation, however, according to available data, such a case is possible only one in a million.

Symptoms

Most often, young patients begin to complain of pain in the hip joint itself. Note that discomfort manifests itself with a relatively small frequency. So the intervals can be from a few days to a couple of months. Perthes disease in children can manifest itself in the form of pain in other parts of the body, namely in the inguinal and gluteal regions. When moving, most often it intensifies.

Diagnostics

Perthes disease in children can be determined only by a qualified specialist after a series of additional tests. For example, radiography of the hip joint itself is prescribed for small patients. Already during the planned treatment, after confirming the diagnosis, several more pictures may be required to determine the full picture of the disease.

Perthes disease Stages

At the moment, doctors conditionally distinguish four stages of this ailment:

• 1st stage. In this case, the patient is still not aware of his illness. Such a change in bone structure at the microscopic level is almost impossible to determine with the main diagnostic methods. Consistently developing the so-called cartilage osteonecrosis.
• 2nd stage. There is a feeling of discomfort, as well as minor pain in the area of ​​the hip joint. Then an impression fracture occurs. The zone of existing structural changes, according to experts, varies from 10 to 30%.
• 3rd stage. The patient begins to complain of pain during movement that does not go away at rest. This stage of the development of the disease, as a rule, is determined by the roughness of the outlines of the femoral head. The inter-articular space expands or, conversely, narrows.
• 4th stage. The joint is practically devoid of its functionality, constant pains are felt. The head at this stage is completely destroyed, there is a dislocation or even a subluxation. In this case, the region of structural changes is determined by the boundaries from 50 to 80%.

Treatment

If the x-ray showed minor signs of the disease, only constant monitoring of the child is prescribed. Otherwise, with obvious symptoms of the disease, some methods of therapy are used.

Non-surgical treatment

To reduce discomfort and pain directly in the hip joint, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are prescribed for children (for example, Ibuprofen).

The treatment regimen in this case depends directly on the intensity of tissue repair. In addition, a course of special therapeutic physical education is prescribed, the exercises of which are recommended to be performed until complete recovery. With progressive deformation, a plaster cast is prescribed, which allows you to hold the femoral head inside the so-called acetabulum.

Surgery

The operation allows you to completely restore the necessary location of all the bones directly in the hip joint. So, in this case, the head of the bone moves inside the aforementioned acetabulum. This position is fixed by means of special bolts and plates, which are completely removed after a certain period of time. The rehabilitation process here depends on the success of the operation itself.