2022 National Health Publicity Week for the Elderly Launched ｜ Avoiding Misunderstandings and Preventing Knee Arthritis Scientifically

CCTV News:July 25th this year — July 31st is the fourth "Health Promotion Week for the Elderly" in China. The theme of this year is to improve the nutrition and promote the health of the elderly. Various forms have been adopted in various localities to publicize the policies on health services for the elderly and the knowledge of popular science on health for the elderly.

In this elderly health care center in Yanjiao, Sanhe, Hebei Province, a monthly elderly health lecture hall is being held, and nutritionists explain health knowledge to the elderly.

Zhejiang has carried out the "Five Actions" of health services for the elderly in view of their visual function, oral health, nutritional status, cognitive function and wisdom to help the elderly, so as to improve their health management level. In Xilong Township, Anji County, in addition to routine physical examination items, residents over 65 years old also enjoy physical examination services such as thyroid function and tumor markers.

　　　　　　 The team of family doctors in Wenjiang District of Chengdu provides free health services for more than 1,500 disabled and semi-disabled elderly people over 65 years old in the whole district. Guo Fuze, a 77-year-old resident, had a sudden cerebral infarction seven years ago, and his lower body was paralyzed, so he couldn’t take care of himself. Family doctors came to his house regularly for health examination and rehabilitation training.

People often say that "people get old when they are old", and the most prominent aging of both legs is the aging of the knee joint. The incidence of knee arthritis in China is about 8%, and the prevalence rate of people over 75 years old is 80%.

In the orthopedic clinic of Beijing Rehabilitation Hospital affiliated to Capital Medical University, about 60% of the patients who came to see the doctor were knee arthritis.

The knee joint is the largest and most complicated joint in the human body. When we walk on the ground, go up and down the stairs and squat, it is mainly the knee joint that plays a role. The time of knee joint pain symptoms is generally earlier than other joints.

Sun Fenglong, Director of the Second Department of Orthopaedics, Beijing Rehabilitation Hospital affiliated to Capital Medical University:It has the best stability, and it also has the best flexibility, so this knee joint is very complicated in structure at first, so this complex organ is prone to many problems, the most common first sports injury, and second, from the perspective of middle-aged and elderly people, its gradual degradation process is a process of cartilage degeneration and arthritis.

　　　　　　 The symptoms of knee arthritis include joint pain, limited joint activity, joint deformity, joint swelling, muscle atrophy and so on. The prevalence rate of people over 65 years old is about 50%, and the prevalence rate of people over 75 years old is as high as 80%. There is no significant difference between male and female in mild patients. Among severe patients over 60 years old, the incidence rate of women is higher than that of men.

According to the doctor, there are some misunderstandings in the prevention and treatment of knee arthritis at present, such as low rate of seeing a doctor and low compliance, etc. So how to prevent and care the knee joint scientifically in daily life? Come and listen to the doctor.

Some patients think that knee arthritis is a minor illness, and they did not seek medical treatment in time, which led to more and more serious conditions.

The doctor reminded that at present, there is no medicine that can reverse the pathological changes of patients with knee arthritis. As long as the articular cartilage has not returned to normal, the pain will reappear and the condition will further deteriorate. Experts remind that incorrect exercise will increase the friction and load of joints and aggravate arthritis.

Sun Fenglong, Director of the Second Department of Orthopaedics, Beijing Rehabilitation Hospital affiliated to Capital Medical University:The first one is climbing the mountain, the second one is dancing, and the third one is boxing. These three kinds of sports are very prone to cartilage damage because they often require the knee joint to be in a semi-flexion state, which has great wear on the patella joint and the inner and outer sides of the whole joint.

Walking, swimming, cycling and other moderate aerobic exercises are helpful to maintain joint function, and patients with mild knee arthritis should exercise leg muscles.