Janice Lloyd writing in USA Today, October 2011 states:
The American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons developed the 2008 treatment guidelines for osteoarthritis of the knee to include only treatments less invasive than joint replacement. Not all the regimens are recommended because scientific evidence is lacking.
Not recommended
» Glucosamine and/or chondrotin sulfate: “Most of the studies recommending it have been done by the industry,” said John Richmond, chair of the AAOS task force that drew up the guidelines. One study concluded there were no clinical benefits compared with a placebo.
Cannot recommend for or against
» Various braces: “These might help some individuals, but overall, we didn’t recommend them because they don’t work on overweight or obese people,” Richmond said
» Acupuncture: The guidelines cite conflicting studies and studies that said the “effects of acupuncture were not statistically significant.”
More
If your knees start throbbing like those of post-game NFL players, remember all of your options – and not just the easy ones, health experts say.
Knee replacement surgeries are expected to soar as baby boomers try to stay active longer, but self-care treatments can help with pain, restore mobility and delay or eliminate the need for surgery.
“Total knee replacement is an epidemic in our country,” said Marj Albohm, president of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association. “That circles back to the American way. Fix it. Give me an operation.”
Replacement operations increased 100 percent over the past 10 years and are expected to rise 500 percent by 2030, according to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. Traumatic injuries and osteoarthritis, which troubles 27 million American adults by damaging cartilage and bone and causing pain, stiffness and swelling, can lead to expensive surgeries.
The best ways to slow down arthritis and help preserve cartilage cushioning knees and other joints are to follow the Arthritis Foundation‘s guidelines, said John Richmond, chairman of the group who wrote the AAOS 2008 guidelines for treatments less invasive than knee replacements. At the top of the list is losing weight.
“The only treatment that actually slows down the progress of the disease is weight loss,” said Richmond, chairman of New England Baptist Hospital’s department of orthopedic surgery in Boston. “You might think restricting activity would help, but it does not.”
Every pound lost reduces the weight on your knees by 4 pounds, said Patience White, chief public health officer of the Arthritis Foundation, which funds research for treatments and a cure.
Among the Arthritis Foundation’s strategies to combat pain and restore mobility:
» Get exercising: Include low-impact aerobic exercises (cycling, brisk walking, gardening and dancing) in your workout routine. “We can’t say this enough. Exercise helps with pain and is good for overall health,” White said.
» Increase muscle: Work all the muscle groups twice a week. Stronger muscles can help support damaged joints.
If your knees start throbbing like those of post-game NFL players, remember all of your options – and not just the easy ones, health experts say.
Knee replacement surgeries are expected to soar as baby boomers try to stay active longer, but self-care treatments can help with pain, restore mobility and delay or eliminate the need for surgery.
“Total knee replacement is an epidemic in our country,” said Marj Albohm, president of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association. “That circles back to the American way. Fix it. Give me an operation.”
Replacement operations increased 100 percent over the past 10 years and are expected to rise 500 percent by 2030, according to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. Traumatic injuries and osteoarthritis, which troubles 27 million American adults by damaging cartilage and bone and causing pain, stiffness and swelling, can lead to expensive surgeries.
The best ways to slow down arthritis and help preserve cartilage cushioning knees and other joints are to follow the Arthritis Foundation’s guidelines, said John Richmond, chairman of the group who wrote the AAOS 2008 guidelines for treatments less invasive than knee replacements. At the top of the list is losing weight.
“The only treatment that actually slows down the progress of the disease is weight loss,” said Richmond, chairman of New England Baptist Hospital’s department of orthopedic surgery in Boston. “You might think restricting activity would help, but it does not.”
Every pound lost reduces the weight on your knees by 4 pounds, said Patience White, chief public health officer of the Arthritis Foundation, which funds research for treatments and a cure.
Among the Arthritis Foundation’s strategies to combat pain and restore mobility:
» Get exercising: Include low-impact aerobic exercises (cycling, brisk walking, gardening and dancing) in your workout routine. “We can’t say this enough. Exercise helps with pain and is good for overall health,” White said.
» Increase muscle: Work all the muscle groups twice a week. Stronger muscles can help support damaged joints.
Intensive exercise practice is proven to improve functional movement ability following orthopedic and neurological injury and disease. Patient motivation and control of the exercise practice are the fundamental factors that are required for optimum functional recovery. Traditional practice is mostly based on low technology tools that intrinsically lack features to challenge and motivate the patient to intensive exercise training. In addition low technology tools do not provide sufficient resolution to completely control the required exercise performance.
Using the HandTutor for hand and wrist arthritis problems and the LegTutor for foot and ankle arthritis problems can help maintain current strength.
The Tutor system, which also includes the ArmTutor and 3DTutor, has been developed to allow for functional rehabilitation of the whole body including the upper and lower extremity. The system consists of ergonomic wearable devices and dedicated rehabilitation software that provide patient instructions and feedback to encourage intensive massed controlled exercise practice. The Tutor system allows for controlled exercise of multijoints within the normal movement pattern which prevents the development of undesired and compensatory joint movement and ensures better performance of functional tasks. Additional features of the Tutor system include quantitative evaluation, objective follow up and tele-rehabilitation.
The Tutor devices are currently assisting patients in leading U.S. and foreign hospitals and clinics and are FDA and CE certified.
No comments:
Post a Comment