The knee joint is the largest joint in the human body and has a complex structure. The joint consists of three bones: femur, tibia and patella, menisci, cruciate ligaments, synovium, capsule, lateral ligaments, tendons and muscles. The movements of the knee joint are quite complex and occur in six different planes. These; These are movements such as front - back, inside - outside, top - bottom, bending - straightening, internal - external rotation and approaching - moving away from the center.
Knee joint is used for standing, walking, running, going up and down stairs and jumping. He makes movements like. These joint movements occur by ensuring delicate balances between bones, joint cartilage surfaces, ligaments, menisci and surrounding muscles.
Medical science is generally based on pain and pain relief remedies. The greatest blessing for human health is a pain-free life. Pain has existed since the beginning of humanity. Hippocrates, who is considered the father of medicine, said: "Relieving pain is a divine art." Pain is an alarm mechanism of the nervous system that protects our body against real or potential tissue damage. Pain is a very complex and individual sensation with biochemical, neurophysiological, psychological, cultural, religious, scientific, ethnic and environmental dimensions.
When evaluating a patient with pain, the type of pain (i.e. chronic - chronic), etiology, pain Social, emotional and psychological factors associated with the disease should be taken into account. In the evaluation of pain; The relationship of pain with movement, anatomical source, formation mechanisms, localization, duration and severity should be taken into consideration.
Knee pain is one of the common musculoskeletal system complaints. Among the main causes of pain in the knee area: Congenital and acquired anomalies in childhood (K, X, O leg), genetic predisposition, infections (soft tissue, bone), traumas (soft tissue, cartilage, bone), osteoarthrosis (calcifications), Indirect negative effects of bone necrosis, meniscus injuries, tumors, metabolic diseases, rheumatic diseases, vascular and nerve lesions, deformities, hip and ankle disorders can be listed.
Osteoarthritis, the most common knee disorder, will be briefly mentioned here.
Knee osteoarthritis (calcification) occurs approximately in individuals over the age of 65. It is seen in 40% of cases. Its incidence increases with age, and age is the most important risk factor. Other structural risk factors include obesity and genetic makeup. In addition, trauma, environmental factors, professional activities, previous joint diseases and chronic loads can be considered.
Diagnostic methods:
1- Listening to the patient and physical examination are the most important methods in making the diagnosis. The most important symptoms of osteoarthrosis are pain, swelling, instability in the knee, difficulty in walking and squatting, ejaculation and tripping. Due to these, there is a decrease in the quality of life and an increase in morbidity and mortality.
2- Radiological methods: Direct radiographs, ultrasonography, computed tomography, magnetic resonance, scintigraphy, etc.
3- Arthroscopic
Treatment methods:
As osteoarthritis is an important health problem and there are different treatment approaches in many countries, internationally accepted evidence-based treatment programs have been prepared in which the basic rules are adopted. The aim of today's treatment approaches is; to reduce pain, increase joint and general body function, reduce disability, slow down or prevent the progression of the disease.
1-Drug-free treatment: Patient education, social support programs, programs to combat obesity, sports exercise programs, programs to cope with the disease. , joint range of motion and strengthening exercises, assistive devices and orthoses.
2- Medication treatment: Simple analgesics, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for those with mild and moderate pain.
3- Intra-articular injections. : Corticosteroids, hyaluronic acid, PRP etc.
4- Surgeries: It is performed on patients who do not benefit sufficiently from the above treatments. Arthroscopic interventions are osteotomies (bone corrections), monocondylar knee prostheses and total knee prostheses. Total prosthesis application is the gold standard today in advanced knee arthrosis. There is also knee arthrodesis (freezing of the knee), which is rarely performed in special circumstances. Genetic studies and developments seem to change all these treatment plans in the near future…
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