Knee Osteoarthritis: The Bare Bones of What You Need to Know About OA
“Running is bad for your knees”, “my bones are rubbing against each other, I shouldn’t run or walk too much”, “I have bad knees”. We’ve all heard the whole nine yards about knee pain and arthritis. We’ve been told that our x-rays have come back showing degeneration or we’ve been hit with the diagnosis of arthritis. What is arthritis though? Arthritis refers to the swelling or inflammation of one or more joints and it’s surrounding structures. If you have been told that you have arthritis, there’s a good chance that you have heard the terms “bone on bone” or “wear and tear” before. As the most common form of arthritis, osteoarthritis affects over 32.5 million adults in the United States alone. With all of that being said, let’s get down to brass tacks.
What is Osteoarthritis?
Traditionally, many healthcare experts have described osteoarthritis as a rubbing of bones or a ‘wear-and-tear’ condition. While it’s possible in some cases to have actual contact of bones, that’s only for a small percentage of individuals with osteoarthritis. In virtually all cases though, what we feel with osteoarthritis is a result of a more dynamic process versus a fixed degenerative one. In all of our joints, the two bones that form the joints are both lined with a protective layer of cartilage that act somewhat as a lubricant and a protective coating. Osteoarthritis involves a constant process where the cartilage and bone are in a continuous state of being replaced. This dynamic process activates the body’s natural inflammation system which is one of the main causes for our pain with osteoarthritis.
Do I have osteoarthritis?
Osteoarthritis becomes more prevalent in older populations, so when you have joint pain it is more highly suspected than it is in younger individuals. To diagnose osteoarthritis, a qualified professional healthcare worker must go through a thorough history and physical examination in order to come to a conclusion. While radiographic imaging (ex. X-rays) may show signs of bone change or degeneration, it should be noted that this is not reliably related to pain. Many people actually have degenerative changes but DON’T have pain! General criteria for having knee osteoarthritis includes but is not limited to:
- age ≥45 years;
- activity-related knee joint pain;
- morning knee stiffness ≤ 30 mins;
- report history of knee pain ≥ 3mths
If I have osteoarthritis, can I exercise?
Absolutely. In fact, we fully encourage it. Exercise has been shown to be among the top treatment methods for individuals suffering from osteoarthritis! One of my favorite catch phrases I use with osteoarthritis patients is, “motion is lotion”.
I’ve heard running is bad for my knees, is that true?
As an old wives’ tale with inconclusive evidence, there’s actually no solid proof that running will give you arthritis. While in theory it makes sense that constant impact to your knees would damage them, our bodies are amazing at adapting and healing themselves overtime to new stimuli. It’s actually been found that running may do the exact opposite; running has been shown to actually be beneficial for joint health!
How can a healthcare professional help with my osteoarthritis?
Some exercises may be painful and may even aggravate your osteoarthritis symptoms. The job of a healthcare professional is to not only help manage your symptoms, but also help you create a personalized exercise and movement plan to find things that not only suit your lifestyle, but help you improve your symptoms as well. It can be a daunting task figuring out what movements are safe to perform and how to go about performing them. That is where our team can help!
Want to learn more about osteoarthritis and how to manage it? Book in, TODAY!
Written By: Richard Seto, DC
References:
https://www.cdc.gov/arthritis/basics/osteoarthritis.htm