By Allie Epstein Poalino EBS COLUMNIST | Sponsored Article
Did you know that osteoarthritis, commonly called “arthritis,” affects one in five adults in the United States? As we age, the prevalence of arthritis increases dramatically, impacting 54% of people over the age of 75. Warning signs of arthritis include pain, tenderness, joint swelling and stiffness especially first thing in the morning or after a long workout or hike.
While our instinct might be to rest an achy joint, such as a stiff knee, research shows that the best remedy is actually the opposite: movement. Gentle, low impact, consistent motion can help reduce stiffness, improve mobility, and decrease pain.
Breaking it down: What is “osteoarthritis”?
Osteoarthritis is a type of arthritis that occurs when the cartilage, the smooth, protective tissue that covers the ends of the bones that come together to form a joint, begins to wear down. This loss of cushioning within the joint can lead to pain, tenderness, stiffness, swelling and reduced flexibility in the affected joint or joints. Common joints in the body to develop arthritis are knees, hips, areas in the spine, as well as shoulders, wrists and hands.
What causes someone to develop “osteoarthritis”?
While genetics, family history, and type of occupation can contribute, the biggest factors in developing osteoarthritis are overuse of certain joints and adverse joint mechanics over time. When these things occur together, they create excess friction in a joint, gradually wearing down the smooth cartilage that cushions the two ends of the bones.
A simple way to picture this is to imagine two pearly-smooth surfaces rubbing together so much that they start to act like sandpaper against each other. In the early to middle stages of arthritis, people may notice mild to moderate symptoms, often after intense outdoor activity or long periods of sitting, like during car or airplane trips. In the most severe cases, the cartilage can wear away completely, creating a “bone-on-bone” situation. Individuals with this level of arthritis often have dealt with issues in the affected joint for a long time and now feel extreme symptoms and experience pain when doing things like stairs, squats, kneeling, and even walking, sometimes resulting in limping to get around.
Movement is medicine for osteoarthritis!
As physical therapists, we often hear how frustrated clients feel after an arthritis diagnosis. Some statements are common in the Lone Peak Therapy clinic: “I can’t hike anymore—won’t I make it worse?”; “I can’t ski like I used to because I have arthritis,”; or “I got an x-ray and they found a lot of arthritis, what does that mean?”
Here in Montana, staying active and enjoying the outdoors is a big reason why we are all here in the first place. We understand that, and we’re here to help you find a path forward to keeping you moving and enjoying the activities that you love.
Staying active doesn’t mean pushing through severe pain, it means moving smart and safely to keep your joints healthy and your body strong. Some activities we give the “Green Light” for, regardless of arthritis severity, include swimming, biking or cycling, yoga, or using an elliptical machine at the gym. These exercises are low-impact and gentle on your joints, protecting the healthy cartilage you still have. Ideally, these activities should cause minimal to no pain and leave you feeling better afterward.
Beyond low-impact activity, physical therapy is a powerful way to promote healthy joint movement through purposeful exercise. A physical therapist can address the root cause of your symptoms and help prevent your arthritis from progressing. The first step is identifying why your symptoms are occurring—most often due to overuse or improper joint mechanics. Healthy joints require motion in all directions to function optimally, and our job is to identify which movement patterns aren’t working properly in your body and fix it. Using a combination of manual therapies including, but not limited to, joint mobilization, soft tissue work, dry needling, cupping, along with targeted and custom-built stretching, motor control, and strength training, we will guide you back to the activities you love to do with confidence. If you have any questions or wish to learn more about osteoarthritis, speak to an expert at our Big Sky + Performance or Bozeman + Performance locations today.
Allie Epstein Poalino is a passionate and dedicated Physical Therapist at Lone Peak PT and has proudly served the Big Sky community for the past decade. Our entire team has advanced training and high-level expertise in biomechanics, movement analysis, and performance testing, and provides an unparalleled physical therapy and sports rehabilitation experience.
At Lone Peak PT, we are passionate about helping our patients recover faster and empowering them to excel in their rehabilitation journey and confidently return to doing what they love.
