Is joint replacement necessary for osteoarthritis?

  Osteoarthritis can be clinically divided into primary and secondary categories: 1. Primary osteoarthritis: is osteoarthritis whose cause cannot be detected by all current examination methods, usually referred to as osteoarthritis belongs to this category. 2.  2. Secondary osteoarthritis: It is a lesion induced on the basis of various other causes or diseases, such as trauma, rheumatoid arthritis, neurological and endocrine diseases, etc.  The common site of osteoarthritis is the knee joint. Knee pain is a common complaint when patients with this disease seek medical attention. Early symptoms are pain when going up and down stairs, especially when going down stairs, alternating unilaterally or bilaterally. Sometimes there is joint enlargement, mostly due to bony hypertrophy, or joint effusion.  Drug treatment: Non-steroidal drugs (NSAIDs) are the most commonly used drugs in clinical practice, including ibuprofen (Fenbid), diclofenac (Fotarine), meloxicam (Mupiroc), nebumetone (Relifen), etc. They are effective but have side effects. They have definite efficacy, but side effects are also more obvious, such as gastrointestinal adverse effects and renal impairment. Specific cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors (Cilobal, etc.) are safer compared with the previous drugs, but they should be used with caution in both the elderly and patients with cardiovascular disease. In addition, acetaminophen (paracetamol), which is commonly used, has only antipyretic and analgesic effects, few anti-inflammatory effects, low nephrotoxicity, and small gastrointestinal adverse effects, and is also an important drug for acute and chronic pain treatment.  Local injection therapy: In addition to drug therapy, the pain department can perform local injection therapy, which is divided into two types: external joint cavity block and intra-articular cavity injection. Soft tissue treatment outside the joint cavity can release adhesions and restore normal tissue movement. Intra-articular injection of sodium hyaluronate can increase the lubricating function of synovial fluid, nourish joint cartilage, and promote the repair of joint cartilage. The pain can be satisfactorily relieved by injecting once a week for 5 times as a course of treatment.  In fact, medically speaking, conservative treatment should be preferred if it does not particularly affect function and cause disability. Joint cavity injections and local injections are the only treatments available outside of joint replacement. It can significantly improve the quality of life and allow one to live with more dignity!