Almost all people over the age of 45 are familiar with joint pain, which is accompanied by a feeling of discomfort, a violation of the normal functioning of the limb. The main reasons for the development of such a disorder are excessive physical exertion, injuries, unbalanced nutrition, and so on. A common disease that people often encounter is osteoarthritis of the shoulder joint (coxarthrosis is less common). Treatment of the disease in the early stages can be carried out at home, read about it below.
Causes of osteoarthritis
Degenerative changes in cartilage and surrounding tissues that cause discomfort during movement, pain is osteoarthritis of the shoulder joint. The disease can develop as a result of various factors, which can be subjective or objective. The main reasons for the development of the disease include:
- Joint injuries that have provoked inflammatory processes that adversely affect the state of cartilage and bones. Often there is a development of the disease after a dislocation (especially if the joint was not fixed in place in time and improper tissue fusion began), a fracture of the arm, a severe bruise.
- Hypothermia of the joint, which adversely affects the condition of the cartilage and the work of the joint.
- Excessive stress on the shoulder joint. Athletes, people engaged in physical labor are at risk of the disease.
- The presence of diseases that provoke the development of arthrosis, for example, polyarthritis, obesity.
- Congenital pathologies can become a prerequisite for the development of the disease.
- Unbalanced diet, use of harmful foods (salinity, fat, fast food), which negatively affects the condition of the cartilage and causes disease.
Degrees and symptoms
Osteoarthritis of the shoulder joint is considered a chronic disease, but it can progress very quickly. It is worth starting treatment in the early stages, when it is possible to carry out therapy at home on your own, there is a high probability of getting rid of the negative consequences and effects of the disease. To determine the presence of the disease, to confirm the diagnosis, a visit to the doctor will help, to which you should go if you have such symptoms:
- Weakness in the upper limbs, which is observed not only after intense exercise or exertion, but also in the morning, after rest.
- Shoulder pain that increases after exertion on it and subsides during rest.
- Painful sensations reduce the motor activity of the joint, which leads to stiffness, the inability to lift the limb overhead or turn it.
- Sometimes there is swelling in the joint area.
- Pain can be given in the neck or upper limb, which reduces vital activity, causes general malaise.
In medicine, there are three degrees of development of osteoarthritis of the shoulder joint, each of which has some characteristic symptoms and features:
- 1 degree. At this stage, there is mild pain, which increases when lifting the arm or increasing the load on it. Treatment in the first stage is the simplest and can be done at home by patients on their own.
- 2 degrees. Joint mobility is impaired, any manipulation causes acute pain that does not subside even during rest. There are often cases when it is impossible to independently raise a hand with a joint affected by arthrosis.
- 3 degrees. The stage is called deforming osteoarthritis of the shoulder joint. This is a difficult stage in which deformation of the cartilage is observed, inert growths appear, frequent exacerbations occur. Changes in the joint interfere with the normal functioning of the hand, and surgery is used as a treatment in 98% of cases.
Recommendations for home treatment
This disease brings a lot of inconvenience, interferes with normal life, disrupts the usual rhythm. This adversely affects the general well-being, the emotional state of the patient, so it is necessary to undergo treatment. In the first and second stages of the disease it is possible to carry out therapy at home, adhering to all the recommendations and prescriptions of the doctor.
For healing, a complex of methods is used that allows you to achieve the most effective result. Many can be used at home. Complex therapy includes:
- Medicines.
- Compliance with a diet, the transition to a correct and balanced diet.
- Performing simple physical exercises.
- Surgical intervention.
- Using folk methods.
- Physiotherapy procedures.
- Other methods: treatment with leeches, acupuncture.
Control and adherence to the diet
In the treatment of arthrosis of the shoulder joint, diet and proper nutrition play a significant role. First of all, it is worth removing from the diet foods that adversely affect the condition of the cartilage, the elasticity of the joints. Basic principles of nutrition:
- Harmful foods that adversely affect joint health include: dairy products, pork or veal, potatoes, corn, some vegetables - peppers, eggplant, tomatoes. It is worth reducing the amount of such ingredients consumed or completely eliminating them from the diet.
- To improve the condition of the joint, their elasticity will help the consumption of flaxseed and olive oil.
- It is recommended to eat foods rich in antioxidants, for example fruits and vegetables (cabbage, cucumbers, bananas, olives).
- Alcohol intake is contraindicated.
- Cooking food is through baking, baking, stewing. It is advisable to exclude fried and marinated dishes.
- Nutrition should be as balanced as possible so that the body receives the maximum amount of useful vitamins and minerals.
- Experts recommend the use of sweet, sparkling water.
Physical activity and massage
The treatment of the disease is favorably influenced by the performance of certain physical exercises that can be performed at home alone. Gymnastics improves blood circulation in the tissues surrounding the joint, which contributes to additional nutrition of cells; helps strengthen muscles, develop joint connection. A set of exercises:
1 exercise:
- Starting position: the patient becomes uniform and behind his back his hands are clasped in the lock.
- Raise your arms, trying to keep them straight, without bending at the elbows.
- Repeat the manipulations up to ten times.
2 exercise:
- Starting position: standing erect, arms freely lowered.
- Make alternating circular movements with your shoulders, first forward, then backward.
- Repeat 14-20 times.
3 exercise:
- Get straight, put your hands down.
- In the left hand, you need to carry a maximum load of half a kilogram (a weight, a bottle of sand or water).
- Make circular movements with your hand back and forth, repeating 15 times.
- Perform similar manipulations with the other hand.
In addition to doing exercises, massage of the affected shoulder will help. The procedure has its own nuances that must be followed in order to achieve the maximum result:
- The procedure should be entrusted to a professional who can do everything at the highest level.
- It is worth starting the massage with rubbing and stroking, which will help relieve pain, prepare the body for the procedure.
- The movements should be as precise as possible so as not to cause pain, but to relieve the pain.
Medicines
In the initial stages of the development of the disease, drug treatment is used, which, depending on the group of drugs, has a different effect on the disease. It is important to remember that taking drugs does not solve all problems, this technique should be used in conjunction with other methods of struggle, for example, physical activity. When taking medications, injecting or using ointments, you should follow the doctor's recommendations and follow the dosage. The following groups of drugs are used:
- Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Medicines help relieve swelling, remove tissue inflammation in diseased joints, reduce pain.
- Chondroprotectors - drugs that improve blood circulation, help restore cartilage.
- Analgesics, anesthetics can be taken as tablets or topical ointments can be used to relieve pain
- Muscle relaxants are drugs that help relieve muscle spasm and relieve pain.
- Vitamins, food supplements that enrich the body with substances useful for improving health.
Folk remedies
Often folk methods of treatment are used, which help to remove the symptoms, manifestations of the disease, relieve the condition and get rid of pain. Healthcare professionals recommend the combined use of traditional and traditional medicine, but it is important to coordinate everything with the attending physician. Especially popular are ointments, homemade compresses, baths, compresses and rubs.
Ointments
In folk medicine, ointments are often used, which include natural ingredients that help overcome the disease. To prepare folk and effective medicine, you need:
- Take 10 grams of hops, sweet clover, St. John's wort. Finely chop the herbs and rub them together.
- For a better connection of all the ingredients, add the petroleum jelly and mix everything thoroughly.
- Rub the ointment on the shoulder, this will help reduce pain and remove inflammation.
Decoctions and tinctures
Broth: in an enameled bowl, combine half a celery root, parsley (3 roots), three glasses of water, a pinch of black pepper. Boil all the chopped ingredients under the lid for 10 minutes. Drink the resulting decoction throughout the day for 14 days before meals. A decoction of corn stigmas is also useful, for the preparation of which boil 2 tablespoons of the ingredient for 10 minutes and drink one tablespoon five times a day.
Effective infusion: boil sea buckthorn bark (3 tbsp), dandelion root (2 tsp), parsley seeds (2 tsp) and mint (3 tsp) boil in 0, 5 liters of water. Leave in a dark place overnight. Drink 2 tablespoons of the tincture on an empty stomach before breakfast. Another recipe for a simple but effective tincture: squeeze radish juice (about 30 ml), honey (20 grams) and a pinch of salt. Take before bedtime, preferably after water procedures.
Compresses and rubs
A popular recipe for traditional medicine is a compress with oatmeal. For the procedure, you need to prepare 30 grams of oatmeal in two glasses of water. Apply the prepared mass on the shoulder for 30 minutes. For rubbing, angelica is used (pour 15 grams of grass with boiling water, insist). Rub the resulting dye into the sore shoulder. The second effective recipe for rubbing: prepare rosemary flowers and hellebore root of 10 grams each, mix with the fat and rub three times a day.
Bathrooms
Baths are actively used to improve blood circulation in damaged tissues and provide them with additional nutrients. For maximum results, medicinal herbs and taxes are added to the water. Such plants that have a beneficial effect on the patient are popular: chamomile (relieves inflammation), mint (has a calming effect), juniper, burdock (relieves pain, relieves the condition).
Rules for preparing baths for the procedure:
- Prepare the herb, make a concentrate, which is poured into the bathroom.
- Lie down in the bathroom so that the sore spot is submerged in water.
- Rub the sore shoulder with a towel, then lubricate with cream or ointment.
Other folk methods
For the treatment of arthrosis of the shoulder joint, other methods of traditional medicine are also used, which also have a tangible effect:
- To relieve pain and relieve, it is necessary to mix a few grams of propolis with 50 gr. Fat. After physical exertion, rub on the shoulder.
- Wrapping the shoulder with a burlap soaked in a hay dust solution will help relieve swelling.
- Traditional medicine experts recommend drinking the juice of half a lemon before dinner to improve metabolic processes in the tissues.
- It helps to roll out a hard-boiled egg, which needs to be rolled onto a sore shoulder.
Prevention
The main preventive methods of the disease include:
- Balanced diet, with a complex of essential minerals, vitamins.
- Regularly a series of physical exercises.
- Do not overload the shoulders, arms, so as not to adversely affect the joints.
- Elimination of the causes that provoke the development of the disease.