What should I do if an elderly person has knee pain and glucosamine doesn’t work?

An elderly friend told Huazi that he had knee pain, especially in the morning after getting up, and his knees were stiff and tight, and he had to move around for a while to feel relieved. Someone told him to take some glucosamine, but he took it for a few months and felt that the effect was not particularly good. What should he do?

Huazi said that he was most likely suffering from degenerative osteoarthritis. Glucosamine is a cartilage nutrient supplement with a slow effect. During treatment, attention should also be paid to pain relief and recovery of joint function.

1. Degenerative osteoarthritis related to age and weight Aging is the main factor causing degenerative osteoarthritis. With aging, the joints of the human body will gradually degenerate, and the rate of cartilage wear is faster than the rate of self-repair, which makes degenerative osteoarthritis more likely to occur. It mainly occurs in the knee joint, hip joint, lumbar vertebra, cervical vertebra and other joints that need to bear weight and have a large amount of activity.

Obesity is also an important factor in degenerative osteoarthritis. Excessive weight can lead to increased wear of joint cartilage and induce inflammatory reactions such as joint pain and stiffness. However, after losing weight, joint pain symptoms can be relieved or disappear.

2. Can taking glucosamine relieve pain? The full name of glucosamine is glucosamine, which is an amino monosaccharide. It is a nutrient for articular cartilage and the main component of hyaluronic acid in synovial fluid. From a physiological perspective, glucosamine can promote the repair ability of articular cartilage, reduce cartilage damage, and play a positive physiological role on the joints.

However, human cells can synthesize glucosamine by themselves. As long as the diet is normal and there is no malnutrition, there will generally be no lack of glucosamine. Exogenous glucosamine is mainly extracted from shelled marine organisms, and its role is the same as that of glucosamine synthesized by the human body. However, in actual use, the feedback from patients is mixed. Some say it works, while others say it has no effect.

There are many controversies about the effects of glucosamine both at home and abroad. Different studies will produce different results. In Europe and the United States, glucosamine is not recommended as a first-line drug. The "Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Bone and Joints" issued by my country in 2018 lists glucosamine as a "slow-acting drug to relieve osteoarthritis symptoms."

That is to say, the current evaluation of the effect of glucosamine is relatively cautious. It can be used as a drug to relieve the symptoms of osteoarthritis, or as a cartilage nutritional supplement for auxiliary treatment. This is a matter of opinion. Patients with osteoarthritis can choose to use it according to their actual situation. If it has no effect after 3 to 6 months of use, it is not recommended to continue using it.

3. What should I do if I have degenerative osteoarthritis? The most important treatment for osteoarthritis is to get enough rest, reduce the wear of cartilage, try not to squat, don't walk for a long time, and use crutches when going out. Obese people should lose weight to reduce the wear of bones and joints and promote the self-repair of bones and joints.

For the treatment of pain symptoms caused by osteoarthritis, the first-line medication is non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as ibuprofen, diclofenac, indomethacin, flurbiprofen, meloxicam, etoricoxib and other drugs, which can play an anti-inflammatory and analgesic role.

When nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are taken orally, they may cause adverse reactions such as damage to the digestive tract. You can first use external dosage forms to act locally, which are absorbed through the skin to reach the site of pain, relieving the pain while avoiding damage to the digestive tract. If the symptoms are severe, then take the medication orally.

If joint movement is limited, hyaluronic acid (sodium hyaluronate), glucocorticoids, local anesthetics, etc. can be injected into the joint cavity to relieve pain and improve joint symptoms. This is an invasive method of administration and requires professional doctors to perform sterile operations in medical institutions to avoid infection.

To sum up, knee pain in the elderly may be caused by degenerative osteoarthritis. The effect of glucosamine on osteoarthritis is controversial, and the effect varies greatly among patients. The main treatment is to get enough rest and use painkillers to relieve symptoms. The drug must be used under the guidance of a doctor. If you have any questions about the use of the drug, please consult a doctor or pharmacist. I am pharmacist Huazi. Welcome to follow me and share more health knowledge.