Osteoarthrosis of the ankle joints: causes, diagnosis, prevention, treatment

The movable bone joint between the foot and lower leg during walking experiences loads that are 7 times greater than body weight. Adverse effects on him and weight lifting, prolonged stay in a standing position, overweight. These loads can lead to the development of such a serious pathology as osteoarthritis of the ankle joints. Consider what kind of disease it is, what provoked it and how to deal with it.

Disease characteristic

Osteoarthrosis of the ankle joints is a fairly common ailment. According to statistics, such a pathology is diagnosed in 80% of people aged 50-60 years.

During the life of the joints, heavy loads fall, which a person does not even think about until the joints are bothering him. However, it is they who trigger the aging mechanism. This process destroys the fibers in the joints. In healthy joints, the loss is made up for by the synthesis of new ones.

But if the balance between destruction and restoration is broken, then osteoarthrosis begins to develop. Cartilage becomes brittle, becomes dry. The ankle swells and hurts. He is no longer able to withstand the load. Over time, its destruction occurs. However, the changes concern not only cartilage. They affect the bone underneath.

Outgrowths begin to grow along the edge of the joint. They seem to compensate for the loss of cartilage by increased articular surfaces. This is how deforming osteoarthrosis of the ankle joint develops.

The causes of the disease

A variety of factors can provoke pathology. And most often the disease arises as a result of a combination of several reasons.

The main factors provoking osteoarthritis of the ankle joints are:

1. Aging. Cartilage with age becomes less elastic, loses its ability to resist loads.
2. Congenital pathology. Weakness in connective tissue often causes flat feet. If you do not follow a certain regime, arthrosis may appear at a young age.
3. Genetic predisposition. This fact is scientifically proven.
4. Injuries. Dangerous are both instantaneous severe injuries and permanent minor microtraumas. The latter are often provoked by the characteristics of the profession or sports. So, ballerinas often have osteoarthritis of the ankle joints.
5. Associated ailments. Impaired metabolism, endocrine pathologies can cause the development of an ailment. Most often, pathology occurs in patients with diabetes mellitus, obese people, with atherosclerosis, thyroid diseases.

Pathology stages

According to the progression of the disease, several degrees of the disease are distinguished:

1. Osteoarthrosis of the 1st degree. This is the beginning of the development of the disease. Significant damage to cartilage is not yet observed. The articulation looks quite normal. No visual changes are visible. However, the destruction process has already begun. Cartilage is lacking in nutrients. As a result of this, his cells begin to gradually die. Adjacent tissues also suffer. A person is experiencing some pain.
2. Osteoarthrosis of the ankle joint 2 degrees. In this case, unpleasant manifestations are already more pronounced. The patient experiences severe discomfort. The pain is regular. Sometimes it doesn’t even stop. Joint deformation is observed. X-ray confirms that irreversible processes have occurred . Bone tissue has grown far beyond the joint.
3. Osteoarthrosis of the 3rd degree - deforming. With this pathology, changes are visible even to the naked eye. Cartilage, ligaments, articular bags are very affected. As a result, the ankle joint is deformed.

Symptoms of ailment

All manifestations that occur with this disease depend on the degree of pathology. Over time, these symptoms worsen.

For pathology, the following manifestations are characteristic:

1. Pain syndrome. Discomfort is gradually increasing. Initially, a person experiences pain only while walking, running, playing sports. At rest, unpleasant symptoms completely disappear. With the progression of the disease, discomfort occurs even at night. It is aching in nature and does not allow a person to relax peacefully. The ankle swells and hurts. Further discomfort occurs even in the morning. A person cannot calmly step on his foot.
2. Limited mobility of the joint, stiffness of movements.
3. The limb is clamped in one position.
4. Together with the swelling, the temperature in the painful area can increase. Such symptoms characterize the acute stage of the disease.
5. Articulation deformation.
6. Man cannot step on his foot. A striking symptom characterizing this pathology.

Disease treatment

Only complex therapy is undertaken to combat such a pathology as osteoarthritis of the ankle joint.

Treatment includes the following activities:

1. Massage. It allows you to get rid of painful cramps, improves blood circulation, stimulates the transmission of impulses. As a result, cartilage gets better nutrition.
2. Physiotherapy. Soft methods are assigned. The following may be recommended: magnetotherapy, electrophoresis with Dimexidum, laser therapy, EHF-therapy.
3. Classes of exercise therapy. This is a prerequisite for comprehensive rehabilitation.
4. Orthopedic remedies. They can significantly reduce the load on the damaged joint. The patient may be advised to wear orthopedic shoes or special arch support.

Along with such therapy, medication is prescribed:

1. NSAIDs. To relieve inflammation and reduce pain, medications are recommended: Diclofenac, Indomethacin, Movalis, Ibuprofen.
2. Anti-inflammatory ointments. The medicines will bring benefit: “Fastum-gel”, “Dolgit-cream”, “Diclofenac-gel”, “Revmagel”, “Erazon”.
3. Intra-articular administration. To quickly ease the patient’s torment, they inject drugs directly into the joint: Kenalog, Diprospan, Depo-medrol, Celeston.
4. Chondroprotectors. Such drugs can be taken in the form of tablets: Structum, Don. Medications for intramuscular injection: Rumalon, Alflutop. For intraarticular input use medicines "Alflutop", "Traumeel", "Target T".

Folk remedies

Such treatment is very popular. However, it should be understood that it will benefit only in combination therapy. In addition, its effectiveness can be counted on if osteoarthrosis of the ankle joint is not started.

Folk remedies are often used the following:

1. Rice must be chopped and pre-soaked. Mix it with petroleum jelly. Such gruel is recommended to be applied to the affected joint at night.
2. Take 10 g of bay leaves. Pour 1 tbsp. boiling water. Boil for about 5 minutes. Such a decoction should be drunk all day in small sips. It perfectly removes toxins, waste and salts from the body. Duration of admission can be from 2 weeks to 1 month. After a break, you can repeat the therapy.

Disease prevention

To protect your body from the development of pathology, doctors recommend that you adhere to the recommendations:

1. Watch your weight.
2. Provide the body with proper nutrition.
3. Be sure to perform physical exercises (they should be selected with an orthopedist).
4. Choose shoes correctly (prolonged walking with high heels is unacceptable).

And most importantly, contact your doctor in a timely manner. After all, the pathology detected in the early stages can be suspended.