Arthritis is the wear and tear of joints. It happens to all of us as we age, and should not be something to be worried about. We refer to arthritis as ‘internal wrinkles’. However, for many people, arthritis can be a very painful and debilitating condition. Over 10 million people in the UK have been diagnosed with arthritis, with the most common areas being the lower back and neck, the thumb, the hip and the knee.
Arthritis is usually caused by general wear and tear, and it can be accelerated by a traumatic injury. If there is a weakness or lack of stability around a joint, this can cause it to move abnormally and therefore accelerate the speed of onset as well. Symptoms include stiffness, swelling, achey pain and lack of strength.
It is worth noting that in this article we are mainly referring to osteoarthritis, however there are hundreds of different types including rheumatoid arthritis and juvenile arthritis. Thankfully, Physiotherapy is well suited to treating arthritis, and whilst we cannot reverse the effects of ageing (we wish we could!), we can help people manage their pain effectively.
As Physiotherapists, we take a deep look as to why you are in pain, whether that be a movement issue or something else. Once we have found out exactly what is causing your pain, we can formulate a treatment plan to fix the problem.
Some of the techniques for arthritis treatment include:
Whilst the success rate of these treatments is high, occasionally we struggle to get a break through. We offer Hyaluronic Acid Injections and Corticosteroid Injections which offer both pain relief and joint lubrication and can have long lasting results. If you are interested in exploring these further, please speak to your Physiotherapist.
Usually, with a structured treatment plan, you can expect to see results within a matter of weeks – and most people experience and improvement in their pain immediately.
We have specialists in treating and managing arthritis in our Hertford, Radlett and Hitchin clinics. If you are ready to make an appointment, please click below. Alternatively, if you would like some further information about how we can help, you can contact us here.