Have you been told your knees are stuffed and you’re putting off an inevitable joint replacement?

Has someone told you your joints are “bone on bone”?

Have you been told to give up something you love because you’re just wearing out your joints?

Physiotherapy can help you reduce your osteoarthritic pain in your hips and knees, improve your function and get you back to doing things you love. Our aim is to prevent or delay surgery and improve your pain through advice and exercise. And if you are going down the surgery route, we can provide you with “pre-habilitation” exercises to maximise your chances of a successful recovery post-op.

What is Osteoarthritis?

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a progressive “degeneration” of a joint through an inflammatory cycle which effects that capsule, menisci, articular cartilage, ligaments and eventually the underlying bone. The hip and knee joints represent the majority of OA presentations in clinic, however it can present in any joint. OA typically progresses due to a vicious cycle which causes pain, reduced activity and poorer function, then more pain due to reduced muscular strength and endurance and so on.

What are the common symptoms?

Patients will typically present with a long history (> 3 months) of progressively worsening pain and stiffness. Stiffness will typically last < 30 minutes in the morning, but can return with inactivity during the day. On testing, patients may have swelling around the joint, clicking or crunching with movements, reduced range of motion, feelings of instability and reduced strength.

How can Physiotherapy help Arthritis?

Education

Here’s a great starting point. Osteoarthritis of the hips and knees is a treatable condition, not a death sentence. You can make improvements in pain and function without an operation. A few exercises, a few times per week can improve your pain.

Targeted exercise

Physiotherapy treatment is first line and gold standard for osteoarthritis as it is proven to reduce pain and improve function. Physiotherapy for Knee and Hip OA combines education and advice along with individualised exercises. The exercises will focus on strengthening the muscles around the sore joint and the whole limb to improve your symptoms.

Weight loss

Weight loss is also proven to improve pain and function. If you have a few or many kilograms you could do without, lowering your scale weight will reduce your pain. How does weight loss reduce osteoarthritis pain?

• Reduction in inflammation - adipose tissue (fat) is an inflammation producing organ, increasing systemic inflammation. More inflammation everywhere = more inflammation in your joints = more pain.

• Less stress through your joints - losing weight reduces the load through your joints. 10kg overweight at 5000 steps per day is 50 tonnes of extra weight through your hip or knee every day.

• Weight loss can slow the progression of arthritis.

• Exercises also reduces inflammation - a double whammy!

What you NEED to know about Osteoarthritis

• Exercise for OA is safe and very beneficial when prescribed correctly - you will NOT “wear out your joints faster”

• Evidence on x-ray doesn’t always correlate with symptoms - some peoples scans look bad with no symptoms, some peoples scans look fine but have lots of pain. We treat the patient, not the x-ray.

• Surgery isn’t always necessary - some patients have good improvements in pain and function, especially when rehabilitation starts early.

Get in touch today if you need help with your stiff and painful joints.