Features, symptoms and causes of arthrosis of the hip joint

In the case when the patient develops hip arthrosis - the symptoms of the disease will directly depend on the degree of development of the degenerative-dystrophic process in the cartilaginous tissue of the largest joint of the human body.

Against the backdrop of degeneration of the cartilage lining the articular surface of the acetabulum and the head of the femur, bone changes develop, osteophyte growths occur, which causes a pronounced deformation of the articulation. It is the deformation that causes the patient to develop painful sensations and leads to movement disorders in this joint.

Types of arthrosis of the hip

Depending on the mechanism of development of the disease, hip arthrosis is divided into:

• primary, idiopathic coxarthrosis - arises as an independent disease;
• secondary coxarthrosis - occurs as a complication of various pathological processes affecting this joint( neck fractures, congenital dislocation of the hip, dysplasia)

Causes of the development of the disease

When the patient develops hip arthrosis - the causes of the disease can hide as in excessive load,which is tested in this place, and in combination of various unfavorable factors contributing to the acceleration of degenerative-dystrophic processes in the cartilaginous tissue. Most common causes of coxarthrosis are:

• joint overload, arising from excessive weight, excessive physical exertion, and the rate of development of the change directly depends on the age of the patients. Signs of arthrosis of the hip joint begin to progress when the patient develops vascular disorders and endocrine diseases, which worsen the conditions of circulation in the tissues of the hip joint - the cartilage wears out very quickly in such conditions;
• injury, even minor in strength, but constantly recurring. It is this reason that provokes the development of hip arthrosis, even in patients of young age - they develop atrophy of cartilaginous tissue, bone destruction, which inevitably causes deformation;
• developmental anomalies - it is proved that the disease itself is not inherited, but genetic disorders cause changes in the structure of the cartilage, and congenital pathology of the joints strengthens the role of dysplasia;
• hip joint inflammation - with arthritis of this joint, secondary arthrosis occurs almost always( both with infectious and autoimmune lesions).Even successful relief of an acute inflammatory process does not stop the progression of degenerative-dystrophic changes;
• influence of hormones - it is proved that provoking the appearance of symptoms of arthrosis of the hip joint can not only prolonged therapy with steroid hormones, but also the chronic stress that the patient experiences. And in that, and in another case the patient has a sharp increase in the level of hormones of the adrenal cortex, which disrupts the mechanism of normal production of hyaluronic acid and intra-articular fluid.

Symptoms in men and women

Despite the fact that representatives of the strong and the weaker sex suffer equally from arthrosis of the hip joint - the symptoms of the disease are more pronounced in women, and the pathological process is more difficult. The main manifestations of coxarthrosis are:

• pain localized in the groove area and tending to spread to the anterior and lateral surface of the thigh, but the pain does not "come" below the knee, usually limited to the level of the middle third of the thigh. At the initial stage of the disease, pain occurs only with exercise and passes fairly quickly after rest, but with progression of deformation, the muscles of the thigh are also involved in the process, so the pain remains at rest;
• pain and soreness when climbing the stairs, active movement, trying to climb independently;
• gait disturbance - the appearance of lameness, "overcoming" gait;
• change in the length of the lower limb on the side of the lesion - a shortening occurs more often, leg elongation occurs only in 10% of patients suffering from arthrosis of the hip joint;
• movement disorder, limited mobility of the spine.

If even minor symptoms appear, treatment with coxarthrosis should begin - this will avoid complications that require surgical treatment( endoprosthetics).

Treatment and therapy of hip arthrosis

If the first symptoms of the disease occur, it is necessary to use therapeutic nutrition for arthrosis of the hip joint - this factor of therapy allows to normalize the weight of the patient, which will be a good prevention of disease progression. Charging with arthrosis of the hip joint will help prevent muscle atrophy and movement in the spine - a set of exercises should be selected individually for each patient.

Drug therapy is necessary only with a sharp exacerbation of symptoms of arthrosis, because this disease is characterized by a prolonged course, and virtually all drugs used to eliminate symptoms have a pronounced side effect.