Knee Arthritis and Having Walks

Knee arthritis, also known as knee osteoarthritis, refers to the fraying and deterioration of the cartilaginous structures in the knee joint over time. Unfortunately, once damaged, the knee joint cannot be fully restored and the knee cannot turn back to its former state. However, different treatment procedures applied according to the stage of arthritis may help patients regain movement. Therefore, the best thing to do is to take precautions when arthritis is still mild since arthritis may require surgical intervention in later stages. In fully advanced (4th grade) arthritis cases, the only treatment method is replacing the knee with prosthetics.

Precautions can slow down or completely stop knee arthritis. Strengthening the muscles in and around the knee, exercising, resting, physiotherapic support, and medications are among some of the common non-surgical options. These preventive measures may help in resolving complaints such as pain and in stopping progress of arthritis.

Exercising and keeping active are effective precautions that prevent knee arthritis. However, we recommend that patients should not forget that they still have arthritis while exercising. For example, although walking plays a critical role in strengthening peripheral muscles, covering long distances or applying excessive force on the joint that would strain the knee can have adverse effects and accelerate calcification. Therefore, we recommend arthritis patients to take light and short walks. If “pain” arises, this should be taken as a warning sign and you should stop walking immediately.

In addition to excessive walking, we also advise knee arthritis patients to refrain from using stairs. Patient with arthritis have difficulty going up and down the stairs; bending the knee too much and squatting are also equally harmful.