Introduction
Knee arthrosis is such a common clinical picture that the disease could almost be called a true widespread disease. Almost every German over 50 years of age shows at least signs of incipient knee arthrosis, and many are already complaining about symptoms. The further the age progresses, the more patients become symptomatic, i.e. introduce themselves to a doctor with painful, stiff knees, which are already massively disturbing and restricting in everyday life.
In the final stage of knee arthrosis, often only an operation with the aim of artificially replacing the damaged joint can help. However, with the appropriate knowledge, the pain can be reduced much earlier and the course of the disease can at least be delayed. The goal for all arthrosis patients is normal weight! Weight loss also relieves the knee and thus slows down the development of arthrosis. Special strengthening exercises (some of which are presented below) can help build up muscles at home or under the guidance of a physiotherapist, which in turn stabilizes and relieves the joint.
Cause
In most cases, the cause of knee arthrosis is simply age-related signs of wear and tear. They can be observed when the cartilage layer in the knee joint is destroyed as a result of heavy or years of stress. This layer is located between the bones of the upper and lower leg as a kind of sliding bearing and is also covered by synovial fluid.
Once damaged or degraded, cartilaginous tissue regenerates only very slowly or not at all. This leads to further changes within the knee, which are then conspicuous as arthrosis. The damage to the tissue that leads to arthrosis is intensified by several factors:
- Even slight overweight increases the load on the knee joint enormously, thus accelerating arthroses of the knee;
- Competitive sports that have been practiced excessively over a long period of time and older, unrecognized or untreated injuries to the knee are also risk factors;
- Arthrosis often occurs after injuries such as cruciate ligament or meniscus damage, both of which lead to a loss of stability in the knee and thus to increased movement with increased functional stress on the joint;
- A similar correlation can also be observed in long-term malpositions of the leg axis (for example, in x- or bow legs).
