According to experts, instead of silently enduring, patients need to be diagnosed and treated early to slow down the degeneration process, maintain mobility and improve the quality of life.
Dr. Ma Duc Tu, Deputy Head of the Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology, Chaoyang Hospital, Beijing (China), said that knee osteoarthritis is the most common cause of knee joint pain in the elderly.
The disease does not appear suddenly but is the process of gradual wear of the joint cartilage due to uneven load-bearing or excessive use for a long time. Initially, the cartilage surface becomes rough, then thinens, cracks and may peel off. When the protective cartilage layer is damaged, the bone tips rub directly against each other, causing pain, stiffness and limited movement.
According to Dr. Ma Duc Tu, cold weather reduces blood circulation in the joints, while stimulating tissues around the joints, making pain and stiffness symptoms in people with knee osteoarthritis more obvious. Patients need to keep the knee area warm, limit overexertion and apply appropriate treatment measures to avoid further progression of the disease.
In addition to age and weather factors, many daily habits can also accelerate the process of osteoarthritis.
In which, activities such as climbing mountains, climbing stairs frequently, squatting or overtraining put more pressure on the knee joint than usual, thereby increasing the rate of cartilage erosion. Some elderly people maintain the goal of walking 10,000 steps per day, but if the joint has signs of injury, trying to achieve this number of steps may backfire.
Overweight and obesity are also important risk factors. According to experts, each kilogram of body weight gain can increase the pressure on the knee joints when walking 3-4 times. Prolonged overweight will cause the knee joints to bear a continuous heavy load, promoting the degeneration process.
Many people believe that when suffering from knee osteoarthritis, there are only two options: "tolerate" or "replace joints". However, Dr. Ma Duc Tu affirmed that medicine currently applies a treatment strategy in stages, depending on the degree of injury of each patient.
In the early stages, treatment mainly focuses on lifestyle changes and preserving joint function. Patients need to reduce joint strain by limiting climbing stairs, mountain climbing, squatting or carrying heavy loads. Instead of strong-impact sports, priority should be given to forms of exercise that cause less pressure on the joint such as swimming or light cycling.
Strengthening the anterior thigh muscles also plays an important role because this is considered the "natural shock absorber" of the knee joint. Leg raise exercises or rehabilitation can help improve joint stability.
In addition, weight control is a simple but effective measure to reduce pressure on the knee joint. Some cases may be indicated to use support splints to adjust the bearing axis of the joint.
When the pain affects daily activities, the doctor may prescribe medication. Topical or patch-based anti-inflammatory pain medications are often preferred due to fewer side effects. In cases of severe pain, patients may need to use oral medication as prescribed by the doctor.
In addition, intraarticular injections are also used to reduce symptoms. Injecting hyaluronic acid helps increase lubrication for the joints, while corticosteroid injections can be used short-term to reduce inflammation and pain during acute episodes.
For patients who do not respond to medical treatment but do not need joint replacement, doctors may consider laparoscopic surgery or bone axis correction surgery to preserve the natural joint.
When the knee joint has been seriously destroyed, deformed a lot and prolonged pain greatly affects life, knee replacement surgery will be an effective choice. With the development of modern surgical techniques, the surgery and recovery time has been significantly shortened, helping patients return to normal activities soon.
According to Dr. Ma Duc Tu, the most common mistake of the elderly is to assume that knee joint pain is an inevitable consequence of old age, so they try to endure it. Early detection, proper treatment and maintaining a scientific lifestyle will help slow down the degeneration process, preserve motor function and improve the quality of life in old age.
