Arthritis care issues and measures

The first is inconsistent exercise decision-making (either not daring to move at all or over-injury), the second is irregular pain management (either hard-working or overusing painkillers), and the third is daily care that only focuses on local joints and ignores systemic triggering factors. The corresponding core solution principles are "layered adjustment of movement and stillness, graded pain intervention, and daily full-scenario adaptation." There is no unified universal care plan, and it needs to be dynamically adjusted according to the type of arthritis, disease course, and personal basic conditions.

Let’s first talk about the sports problems that people are most likely to go to extremes. Don’t tell me, I have encountered several patients who go to extremes last month. The one who impressed me the most was 58-year-old Aunt Zhang. After she was diagnosed with knee osteoarthritis, she first lay at home for half a month. Her thigh muscles were so soft that she couldn’t hold her hand, and her legs wobbled when she went downstairs. Later, she heard from the sisters in the community health group that she needed to “stretch the joints a lot” and climbed 20 floors every day before dawn. After a week of climbing, she was so painful that she couldn’t walk. She was helped by her son. Regarding whether patients with arthritis should move, the academic community has actually had iterations of opinions: In the early years, traditional orthopedics emphasized strict immobilization in the acute phase to avoid aggravation of joint wear and tear. In recent years, the sports medicine school has encouraged "moderate non-weight-bearing activities" to avoid muscle atrophy, which would lead to a decrease in joint stability and in turn increase wear and tear. In the actual operation, you don’t have to worry about who to listen to. When the joints are red, swollen and painful and cannot be touched in the acute stage, just rest at home. While applying ice to relieve the swelling, just do muscle isometric contractions - that is, lie down and tighten your thighs, then tighten for 5 seconds and relax for 3 seconds. You can practice muscle strength without moving the joints. ； After the redness and swelling subside, you can start moving slowly. Swimming and squatting against the wall are considered friendly exercises in the industry. However, the specific method depends on individual circumstances. If the posterior corner of the meniscus is injured, squatting should not exceed 30 degrees. Otherwise, it will squeeze and wear the meniscus, which is not worth the gain.

More common than sports contradictions is the polarization of attitudes toward pain. Or you are "addicted to painkillers, and you can't even take them until you die." The pain is so intense that you can't sleep all night long, and you can't even walk. In the end, the inflammation gets worse and worse, and the joints become deformed. ； Or "just take ibuprofen when it hurts, it's very convenient", and don't check again for two or three months. There are also many people who end up with stomach bleeding and liver damage after taking it. Regarding pain intervention, different departments have different priorities: the Department of Rheumatology and Immunology prefers to control the inflammatory response of the primary disease first. Once the inflammation disappears, the pain will naturally be relieved. It is not recommended to take analgesics to cover up the symptoms whenever there is pain. ； Orthopedics recommend short-term use of analgesics during acute pain to avoid deformation of walking posture due to pain, which in turn adds extra wear and tear to joints. When it comes to actual care, you don’t have to stick to one side. Don’t bear the pain to the extent that it affects your sleep and normal walking. Give priority to topical analgesics such as ketoprofen gel and flurbiprofen cataplasm. The side effects are much smaller than those taken orally. If you really want to take oral medicine, you must ask your doctor first to see if you have a history of gastric ulcer or cardiovascular disease. Don’t buy it blindly.

In addition to misunderstandings about treatment and exercise, many people’s attention on daily care is completely misplaced. When it comes to arthritis care, all you need to do is wear knee pads and cover your joints, and don’t care about anything else: patients with gouty arthritis, no matter how thick they wear in winter, or a meal of seafood, beer and iced drinks, are still in so much pain that they can’t get out of bed. ； For patients with rheumatoid arthritis, no matter how expensive they wear knee pads or they take irregular immunosuppressants to control the primary disease, their joints will still deform despite their supposed deformation. There are also many "good habits" that everyone is accustomed to. In fact, they are pitfalls. For example, they think soft-soled shoes are comfortable and buy sports shoes that have a strong feeling of stepping on shit. In fact, if the soles are too soft, the stress on the knee joint will increase by about 30% when walking. Patients with knee arthritis are best to wear hard-soled shoes with heels of 2-3 cm and supportive soles, which will better protect the joints. There are also those tight-fitting knee pads that everyone loves to wear in winter. Don’t wear them all day long. They will make your legs numb and affect blood circulation. It is best to choose ones with support strips and appropriate elasticity. Wear them when you go out for a walk, and take them off when you rest or sleep at home.

I have been doing bone and joint care for almost 8 years, and I have seen too many people regard arthritis as either an "incurable terminal disease" or an "insignificant minor problem." In fact, this disease is like a wooden door at home that has been used for a long time. After all, there is really no standard answer when it comes to nursing care. Others’ good prescriptions may be a trap for you. When you are not sure, asking a specialist or a rehabilitation practitioner is much more reliable than listening to folk remedies in community groups.