How Physiotherapy Treatment Helps Arthritis Pain?

Arthritis affects not just your joints but also the overall quality of life. It causes joint pain and restricts mobility, making daily movements challenging. Though not curable, you can still manage the condition without letting it affect your lifestyle. Physiotherapy treatment helps arthritis pain by reducing joint inflammation, restoring optimum flexibility and releasing muscle tension. It can help you lead a healthier lifestyle while reducing dependence on pain meds. Let’s learn how.

What Exactly is Arthritis?

Arthritis is a condition that causes inflammation in joints. The symptoms are joint pain, swelling and stiffness. The joints feel tight, and you may find it hard to move them, especially in the morning. In simple words, arthritis interrupts the smooth movements of your joints, making everyday activities difficult.

There are different types of arthritis. The two most common ones are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis causes the breakdown of cartilage, which cushions the ends of your bones. As the cartilage deteriorates, the bones start rubbing against each other, resulting in pain. It mostly affects the hands, knees, hips and spine.

Rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis causes the body’s immune system to attack the lining of joints. This leads to inflammation, which causes joint pain and stiffness.

How Physiotherapy Treatment Helps Manage Arthritis Pain?

Staying active is one of the best ways to manage arthritis. Physiotherapy helps you do that so you can learn to manage the symptoms and lead an independent life. Physiotherapists are licensed professionals with expertise in assessing movement inefficiencies and restoring your optimum capabilities with natural techniques.

Here’s a breakdown of the benefits of physiotherapy in arthritis treatment.

Arthritis Pain Relief

Physiotherapists use different techniques to reduce joint pain and inflammation. The common techniques include targeted exercises, manual therapy and modalities like heat & cold therapy.

Improved Mobility and Flexibility

Tailored exercise programs help physiotherapists enhance the affected joint’s range of motion. Certain stretching and flexibility exercises relieve joint stiffness, enabling you to move and perform daily activities with ease.

Better Muscle Strength

Physiotherapists help strengthen muscles surrounding the affected joints. Stronger muscles reduce the burden on joints, minimizing joint pain and stiffness.

Functional Ability Restored

Arthritic pain affects your ability to perform everyday tasks. Physiotherapists address your unique functional limitations with customized exercises and therapies. They use evidence-based treatments that help restore and improve the ability to perform everyday tasks.

Self-Management

Physiotherapy aims to empower you to lead a healthy, independent life without relying on pain meds. Physiotherapists therefore educate you on lifestyle habits that can control the condition and prevent it from worsening. They guide you through proper body mechanics, joint protection techniques, posture and home exercise programs for the prevention of further joint damage.

Which Physiotherapy Treatments Reduce Arthritis Pain?

Physiotherapists prescribe treatments based on the type of arthritis, intensity of your pain, lifestyle and medical history. If you experience joint stiffness or pain, consult a physiotherapist near Brampton as soon as possible. Every patient receives a unique treatment plan.

Physiotherapy for Osteoarthritis:

Exercise Therapy

Several strengthening and stretching exercises make the muscles surrounding the arthritic joints stronger. Range of motion exercises help maintain joint flexibility. Aerobic exercises such as swimming or walking improve overall fitness without excessive joint stress.

Manual Therapy

Physiotherapists use joint mobilization techniques and soft tissue mobilizations to relieve muscle tension and stiffness. It helps you move the joints with ease.

Modalities

The other modalities that help with osteoarthritis include heat and cold therapy, ultrasound or TENS.

Physiotherapy for Rheumatoid Arthritis:

Exercise Therapy

Physiotherapists guide you through exercises that can restore your optimum movement abilities. Gentle range of motion exercises and strengthening exercises prevent stiffness and help reduce joint inflammation as well.

Manual Therapy

Manual therapy or manual manipulation of soft tissues reduces muscle tightness. Joint mobilization techniques reduce the inflammation in joints.

Other Modalities

Physios can use other modalities to manage rheumatoid arthritis such as custom orthotics & heat & cold therapy.

What To Expect From Your Physical Therapy Sessions?

̧Physiotherapy sessions focus on restoring your functional ability while reducing joint pain and stiffness. In most reputed physiotherapy clinics in Brampton, the sessions are personalized to address the unique needs of patients. The visits may last a few minutes or about an hour, depending on what your body needs to recover completely.

Here’s a brief overview of what to expect during your physiotherapy visits.

Initial consultation

The physiotherapist asks you several questions about your symptoms, medical history and lifestyle. You can let them know your concerns and expectations from the sessions. The physio then customizes a treatment plan accordingly.

Injury assessment & diagnosis

The therapist assesses your symptoms and performs tests to diagnose the condition accurately.

Treatment

The sessions begin as the therapist explains the treatment plan to you. The number of sessions you would need for optimum recovery depends on the severity of your condition. Physiotherapists can modify the sessions or treatment plan based on the changes in your health.

Prevention & Education

Besides the sessions, physiotherapists also educate you about the condition and the factors that can trigger the symptoms. They help you adopt a healthier lifestyle that keeps arthritis pain in check.

Tips to Find the Right Physical Therapist for Arthritis

The right physical therapist can make all the difference in your arthritic management. Take some time to research and choose a licensed professional with years of extensive experience in arthritic treatment. Here are some realistic and practical tips to find the best physiotherapist for arthritis.

• Look for a therapist with experience in treating arthritis, whether osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis.
• Check if the therapist is licensed and certified.
• Read reviews online and ask for recommendations from friends and family.
• Evaluate communication skills and approach to ensure the professional is capable of answering your questions efficiently.
• It is always convenient to choose a physiotherapy clinic that is located near your location.

You should visit your physiotherapist as soon as you notice the symptoms of arthritis. It is easier to manage the condition if you address the concerns at an early stage.

Physiotherapy is an effective treatment method for arthritis. It works by reducing joint pain and relieving stiffness. The treatment plans differ for each patient and are customized to their unique needs at most physiotherapy care centres such as Physiotherapy First.

sid@easydigi.ca

See Full Bio