“Arthritis affects more than 52 million adults in the United States and is the most common cause of disability,” according to the CDC. The pain from arthritis can set the stage for a decline in physical activity and make it difficult to prevent chronic health problems. Unfortunately, some who suffer from this ailment stop their activity and become depressed from thoughts of the mobility they once had.
Jane E. Brody, author of the “Keep Moving to Stay a Step Ahead of Arthritis” article in The New York Times recently attempted to relate to those suffering from arthritis by speaking of her own battle with having to put down the tennis racket after decades of enjoying the sport, and her story did not end there. Two years after that, she had joint replacement surgery, picked up an assortment of other activities that successfully replaced tennis as a main source of activity. Therefore, encouraging others to do the same and not succumb to the depression that can sometimes come in hand with arthritis.
The reality is that the majority of people dealing with arthritis do not fully understand what they are capable of. Less than 10% of participants with arthritic knees in a 10-year study met the national guidelines of doing two and a half hours of moderate physical activity a week. Yes, you read that correctly, a week! It gets better though. Participants did notice a significant improvement of function when the amount of activity per week was increased. Additional weight on the body creates unnecessary stress on the major joints as well, leaving a 10% decrease in weight able to make a noticeable difference. With this fact a recommendation of starter exercises were mentioned, including walking laps in a swimming pool and then increasing activity as the muscles gain strength.
For more insightful tips, come to Dr. Delos’ talk about “Solutions for Knee Pain in Active Patients with Arthritis” tonight! The program is free and open to the public! Registration Requested. Aside from the talk, please consult your physician if this article has hit home and/or your quality of life is not what it once was; ONS provides excellent service and care for those in need, proudly keeping up-to-date with developments in the field.
On Wednesday, April 22nd, at 6:00 p.m., orthopedic surgeon/ joint replacement specialists from ONS and Greenwich Hospital will present a joint replacement symposium in the Noble Conference Center at Greenwich Hospital located at 5 Perryridge Road. Knee and hip specialists Frank Ennis, MD and Brian Kavanagh, MD; and shoulder specialist Seth Miller, MD will present information about the latest advances in joint replacement, including computer-assisted and minimal incision, muscle sparing techniques. Information about preparing for joint replacement, pain management and what to expect from the recovery process will be addressed by hospital anesthesiology, nursing and physical therapy department staff.
Remember last week’s post?
tendon are increasingly common in our aging yet increasingly active population. In cases where an Achilles rupture is missed or the rupture cannot be repaired directly under normal tension, adding the flexor hallicus longus tendon transfer allows for significantly improved results with a shorter recovery.
osteoporosis include aging, being female, low body weight, low sex hormones or menopause, smoking, and some medications.
His second presentation, “A comparison of pyrolytic carbon hemiarthrioplasty versus Thompson suspensionplasty in the treatment of trapezial metacarpal arthritis,” was a study that compared a traditional treatment for thumb arthritis with a new pyrocarbon joint replacement for the thumb.
