The most common disease of the musculoskeletal system is inflammation of the elbow joint bag. In the medical field, it is called bursitis. Before you consider how to treat bursitis of the elbow joint, you need to find out what the elbow is and what it is.
What is an elbow?
This is a place where three bones are connected at once. We are talking about beam, elbow and shoulder. This anatomical connection combines the bag where the grease is located. In other words, it is called synovial fluid. Such a bag is needed so that the bones do not rub together. There should be little synovial fluid, it is only necessary to lubricate the surface. If there is an excess of it, this means that the lubrication function is impaired. That is why the treatment of bursitis of the elbow joint will be aimed at ensuring that the joint moves without any difficulty. Do not crunch, pain, or discomfort while moving your hand.
Inflammation of the elbow bags
In order to understand what are the symptoms of bursitis of the elbow joint, it is necessary to understand the causes of such a problem. At risk are people who are bedridden or are in old age. Systemic diseases in the form of diabetes or injuries can also cause bursitis. Severe infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, gonorrhea, and so on also cause this disease. Cuts in which the infection penetrates the elbow joint are provoking factors. Arthritis affects all joints of the body, so that ulnar bursitis may develop later.
Acute injury, as well as the same type of damage that is regularly repeated, often cause this ailment. It should be noted that problems can occur when the joint is damaged due to weight transfer to it. Therefore, such a disease very often affects students, miners, athletes, and so on. There are also cases of the disease in which the etymology is unknown. In this case, before deciding on how to treat elbow bursitis, the doctor should conduct a full examination of the person in order to diagnose a possible cause.
Symptoms of bursitis
This disease can be suspected if the person has sharply reddened the area of the joint and began to increase in size. In this case, swelling is observed. The joint itself is hot, it can disturb pain, which intensifies when moving, fever, weakness, chills and lack of appetite occur. There may also be redness that spreads far around.
If a person has at least one of the symptoms of bursitis of the elbow joint (the photos of which are given in the article), you should immediately consult a doctor. The sooner a person begins treatment, the greater the likelihood that the disease will be defeated.
Consequences of the disease
If this disease is not treated, complications will arise. It should be understood that it does not pass by itself. Subsequently, suppuration may appear, which will spread around. In the joint bag, the blood supply will be disturbed, so the infection may linger for a long time. Pus is able to affect all tissues. Because of this, fistulas may form. If you avoid treatment of bursitis of the elbow joint (the photo of which is given in the article), then its functional activity may be completely impaired.
If we are talking about acute inflammation, then it can go into a chronic form. In this case, pain and fever will be constant. In order to avoid this, you need to start treatment immediately from the first days of the disease. You should contact a traumatologist, or an orthopedist. They are the main specialists in diseases of the joints and bones.
Help at home
A lot of people faced with a similar problem are concerned about the question of how to treat elbow bursitis at home. First of all, you need to put a tight bandage on the joint. This is necessary so that he can relax and rest. You need to bandage the arm in a bent state, while the angle should be 90 degrees. Next, throw the scarf over the neck and fix the hand. It should hang on a bandage. The main thing is that when bandaging, blood vessels are not badly injured. This means that it is not necessary to over-tighten the hand with a bandage. All fingertips should remain sensitive. If they begin to go numb, this means the bandages should be loosened. Ready-made sports dressings are also sold, which allow for a similar procedure. In general, at home, bursitis of the elbow joint can be treated quite successfully. You can also use any kind of analgesic anti-inflammatory ointment. The range of such drugs is huge. Which one to choose in your particular situation - the doctor will tell you.
Antibiotic choice
Sometimes it happens that the symptoms of bursitis of the elbow joint are very pronounced, and the disease itself is extremely difficult. In this case, the treatment will be complex and lengthy. If all manifestations are too aggressive, then simple means can not cope. In this case, you need to see a doctor so that he prescribes antibiotics. There is an unwritten rule that says that inflammation should at least slightly decrease on the third day of treatment. If this does not happen, the situation continues to worsen, then you need to go to the doctor again so that he adjusts the course of therapy and selects a more effective drug. Which medicine will be chosen depends entirely on the age, side diseases that the patient has, and the severity of the disease. It should also be borne in mind that ointments, gels, tablets and other medicines are prescribed exclusively by the attending physician. Do not forget that self-medication can lead to even greater health problems.
Forms of the disease
Elbow bursitis is divided into three forms. The easiest is the pathology, in which fluid occurs in the bag. In this case, bacteria are absent.
The second stage is more serious, it is called hemorrhagic. In this case, blood enters the cavity of the bag. And the third, most severe form, is purulent. This suggests that pathogenic bacteria have entered the joint.
Treatment process
A photo of bursitis of the elbow joint demonstrates the severity of the disease. If treatment is not started on time, complications may occur. Sometimes conventional medicines are not enough. This suggests that too much fluid has accumulated in the elbow. In this case, the joint bag does not stretch, and the liquid provokes the occurrence of severe pain.
In order to alleviate the condition of the patient, puncture is performed. The bag is carefully punctured with a needle, and the accumulated joint fluid is carefully removed. In some cases, there is a reason to send her for research in order to fully understand the causes of pain. Without removing the needle from the cavity of the periarticular bag, the doctor introduces painkillers during the puncture, so the condition of the patients, as a rule, is alleviated. As a rule, high-speed drugs are used that can achieve relief in a few minutes.
Is it possible to fully recover?
Elbow bursitis can not always be completely cured. It depends on the human body, as well as the degree of the disease with which the patient went to the doctor. If we are talking about a purulent form, then the treatment is always complex. With isolated bursitis, when the remaining organs of the patient are as healthy as possible, and the person is young, then such a disease can be completely completely cured. However, if there are any concomitant diseases, then the prognosis will be poor.
In order to calculate which therapy will be most effective, the doctor makes an x-ray, ultrasound of the joint to understand what changes have occurred in the joint bag. Clinical studies are also conducted. This is a blood test, urine, glucose and so on. It also allows you to find out which antibiotic a person is sensitive to. In order to improve a person’s condition, you need to get rid of pathogenic bacteria. With purulent bursitis, drainage should be used to alleviate the condition. In this case, purulent discharge will find out. In order to accelerate recovery, it is necessary to wash this incision with antiseptics and antibiotics.
General disease
If bursitis of the elbow joint is caused by any primary diseases, such as diabetes, tuberculosis, etc., then for starters the doctor tries to eliminate all the symptoms of such a pathology. In the event that bursitis is associated only with the overall clinical picture, urgent therapeutic actions must be carried out in order to stop the pathogen.
Timely treatment always leads to a positive result. If we are talking about serious diseases that can lead to bursitis, then these patients are trying to protect against inflammation of this type. Elderly people should be protected from injuries, and bedridden patients should be turned over more often in bed. Due to the fact that the blood will function much better in this case, this will positively affect the quality of life.
Folk remedies
If we are talking about a mild form, when pus or blood does not enter the composition, lotions, coniferous baths, wraps and other similar procedures help in the treatment of bursitis of the elbow joint. They have a resolving effect and are capable of producing good results. Anyway, a folk remedy should be selected and approved only by a doctor. In order to relieve inflammation, antibiotics as well as anti-inflammatory drugs should be used in parallel. If the purulent process has begun, then folk remedies must be immediately abandoned.
Chronic bursitis
If the disease has turned into a chronic form, then it is necessary to persistently continue treatment. Only in this way can a stable remission be achieved. The chronic process can cause joint stiffness, which is difficult to cope with. If chronic bursitis of the elbow joint occurs, then physiotherapy must be carried out. At the moment, there are a large number of therapeutic methods that can successfully deal with a similar problem.
Phonophoresis (ultrasound treatment) has an excellent effect. Such a result will not be long in coming. Acupuncture is also quite effective, but only if it is performed by a highly skilled specialist. It is imperative to carry out physiotherapy exercises, starting with simple exercises in the form of wiggling your hand. Over time, you need to bring the scope to the usual level. Exercises need to be performed daily, massage and passive physical education are also well suited.
conclusions
The article describes the manifestations, possible causes and methods of treating bursitis, which affects the elbow joint. It is important to pay attention to therapy for this disease, since its complete absence can lead to disability and complete muscle atrophy. Initially, the movement of the joint itself will be blocked, and then problems with tendons and tissues will begin to appear. Many patients who started treating the disease on time, and also follow preventive measures, do not even suffer from relapses.
In the treatment of the disease, antibacterial agents, anti-inflammatory drugs without fail and, if necessary, antiseptic drugs should be used. The latter are necessary if the patient has injuries or an operation has been performed, drainage has been performed. The latter allows you to get rid of purulent inflammation, saving the bag of the joint from excess fluid and bacteria.
After a successful cure of the disease, you must always protect your elbow joint from injuries and sprains so that a relapse is not provoked. As mentioned above, it is impossible to achieve a complete cure, since the disease has been little studied and the causes that affect the appearance of bursitis are simply not fully revealed.
Preventive measures will not only protect against relapse, but also from the usual risk of a disease. After all, the symptoms and treatment of bursitis of the elbow joint is much easier to avoid than it might seem at first glance. You need to eat more fruits, berries and vegetables in order to prevent vitamin deficiency. Be sure to monitor your immune system, preventing the development of any other serious diseases. In some diseases, complications include problems with the musculoskeletal system, which is quite serious. You should consult a doctor when the first symptoms appear and then the patient will not have to fear for his health.