Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most common forms of arthritis and affects more than 25 million people worldwide. Osteoarthritis of the knee is a degenerative joint disease and you may experience knee pain, stiffness, and reduced strength.
There are multiple factors that increase the risk of knee osteoarthritis like advancing age, and any past injury to the knee joint can increase your risk of developing knee osteoarthritis in your later in life. Along with that genetics, becoming overweight and specific jobs that place undue stress on the knee joint are also possible risk factors.
The common Symptoms of knee osteoarthritis include morning stiffness or stiffness after prolonged sitting hours, pain during daily tasks, and pain when pressing on the knee. You can also report cracking sounds or feeling of locking in your knee joint. You can have difficulties in your daily tasks like walking, climbing stairs, or getting in or out of the car.
Physical therapy can help you to reduce your knee osteoarthritis symptoms and also slow down the progression of your disease. Regular exercise is one of the important treatment strategies in osteoarthritis management.
Some of the exercises you can perform at your home include the following. Please warm up with a 5-minute walk first. For pain relief, you can apply ice or heat.
- Hamstring stretch: Lie down when you’re ready to stretch your hamstring. Loop a bed sheet around your right foot. Use the sheet to help pull the straight leg up. Hold for 20 seconds, then lower the leg. Repeat twice. Then, switch legs.
- Calf stretch: Hold onto a chair for balance. Bend your right leg. Step back with your left leg, and slowly straighten it behind you. Press your left heel toward the floor. You should feel the stretch in the calf of your back leg. Hold for 20 seconds. Repeat twice, then switch legs.
- Seated hip March: Strengthen your hips and thigh muscles. It can help with daily activities like walking or standing up.
- perform pillow squeeze
- Perform heel raises
- Walking: walking can be great exercise. Start slow, stand tall, and keep at it. Walking has many benefits. You can ease joint pain, strengthen your leg muscles, and improve your posture and flexibility. It’s also good for your heart.
Some Other activities that are easy on the knees include biking, swimming, and water aerobics. Water exercise takes the weight off painful joints.
When it comes to how much exercise you should perform? The answer is 30 minutes a day is a good goal. However, it depends on your plan.
For this purpose, a physical therapist at IMC can create a customized, comprehensive program of exercise and manual therapy to help knee osteoarthritis patients move safely and improve function, strength, and range of motion in the knee joint.
Your physical therapist at IMC will also evaluate your needs and can provide you with a personalized exercise plan
The rehab services provided by IMC physical therapists can also include lifestyle changes like maintaining a healthy weight, regular movement of the knee to reduce stiffness, wearing supportive shoes, and protecting the knee when sitting.
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