What is hip calcification in brief?
The hip joint is a socket-type joint between the head of the bone we call femur and the hip bone. Due to its structure, it can move in any direction. Biomechanically, it is a joint where extremely heavy biomechanical loads are placed on the head of the femur bone. Hip joint arthritis is the most common among large joints after knee arthritis. Although it is generally a disease of old age, it can also be seen at an early age.
Arthritis basically begins with the wear and tear of the cartilage on the bone surfaces that form the joint. First, the structure of the cartilage deteriorates and becomes thinner. When the load-carrying capacity of cartilage decreases, the loads on the underlying bones increase significantly. These bones respond to this increasing load by forming new bone. These formed bones are called ostophytes, and this disease is called calcification due to this new bone formation. Over time, the joint structure deteriorates further. The clinical reflection of this is pain and limitation of movement in the joint. As the complaint progresses, these complaints are followed by walking difficulty and disruption in walking.
The main cause of hip calcification is biomechanically abnormal loads on the joint. For this reason, the structure of the hip joint is developmentally (congenitally) defective or not in an ideal shape (congenital hip dislocation, hip impingement syndrome-femoraacetabular pigmentation), excessive load on the hip joint for a long time (e.g. leg shortness), traumas, etc. A deterioration may begin in the joint. Sometimes, inflammatory rheumatisms that directly affect the joint (rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, etc.) can cause arthritis and subsequent calcification in the joint. Some diseases affecting the femur bone (aseptic necrosis, perthes) may subsequently cause hip calcification. In some cases, no cause may be found.
Which branch of medicine treats hip calcification?
Basically, two branches deal with the treatment of hip calcification. Physical therapy and orthopedics. Physical therapy is effective in all types of treatment at every stage of the disease. The branch of orthopedics deals with the surgical treatment of the disease. Patients should seek the opinions of both physical therapy and orthopedic doctors when making their surgical decision. An unnecessary or early surgery brings risks. Although Although some orthopedists do not recommend physical therapy after surgery, physical therapy is absolutely necessary.
Hip arthritis treatments; medications, physical therapy, injection (needle) treatments, exercise
Treatment of hip calcification should be done in a multifaceted manner. In this disorder, the first complaint that brings the patient to the doctor is pain. Contrary to popular belief, the web is not felt in the hip-butt area, but is felt in the groin area and may spread towards the knee. For this reason, diagnosis may sometimes be delayed. Although diagnosis is easy, treatment is not easy. It is important to catch the patient early. Sometimes patients may complain of very mild pain that is disproportionate to the problem in the joint. Early detection of the disease contributes greatly to the treatment. The patient's pain must first be reduced. For this purpose, antirheumatic drugs, which we call nonsteroidal, are given. Due to the possible side effects of these drugs, the lowest possible dose should be given. Physical therapy methods are significantly beneficial except for the advanced stages of hip calcification. Treatment should be done from the groin area. Physical therapy performed on the back of the hip will be ineffective. In hip calcification, PRP (platelet-rich plasma9; Cartilage and cortisone injections) can also be applied to the joint. Mild and moderate cases benefit from PRP (platelet-rich plasma) injection into the hip joint. Injections are repeated three times a month. In moderate and severe cases, cortisone and cartilage injections (cortisone and cartilage injections) can be applied to the hip joint. Na hyalurinate) works. In order for these injections to be effective, they must be done with the help of ultrasound imaging (Photograph). It is almost impossible to inject the hip joint manually. It is not enough on its own to prevent arthritis. In order to protect the hip joint, the patient's activities such as walking and running should be restricted. Instead, swimming, which does not put any load on the hip joint, is recommended. In the patient who cannot use his muscles due to pain, his hip muscles weaken and limping may occur. To avoid such a result, muscle strengthening exercises must be performed. is given. Hip calcification is a disease with a high tendency to progress. For this reason, despite all the treatments, it is not possible to stop the disease and only slow down its course. It may happen. In advanced cases, surgery is the only option. Prosthesis surgeries are generally extremely successful. Physical therapy must be applied after the prosthesis.
Advanced Hip Calcification and Surgery
Hip When calcification progresses, prosthesis surgery becomes inevitable. The most important factor here is the age of the patient. In general, this surgery is not recommended for people under the age of 65. However, hip arthritis may occur at a very early age due to congenital hip dislocation or other hip disorders (avascular necrosis, rheumatoid arthritis, etc.). The important thing here is to give the patient time. Cortisone, cartilage, PRP injections and physical therapy described in the hip arthritis section will be more or less useful. Even one year gained with these methods is extremely important for young patients. Because the patient will spend one year less time with the prosthesis. Since dentures have a lifespan, the later they are made at a younger age, the better for the patient. The next revision prosthesis will also be delayed at that rate. Longer-lasting ceramic prostheses are used at younger ages. It is not the right approach to wait for prosthesis surgery at older ages if there is an indication.
Read: 0
