Treatment for arthritis
There are many different treatments for arthritis. We run through a few here.
Massage
As stated before massage can be a great way of suppressing pain and stiffness symptoms associated with OA. When arthrits is present the muscles con contract to help protect the joint. This can also increase pain. Relaxing these muscles can help reduce pain and increase mobility in the joint. Unfortunately, this is only short term until the body starts to guard or protect itself again.
Bracing treatment for arthritis
Bracing is a term used for adding support ot the area to reduce movement. As movement can cause pain reducing this help reduce the pain. On the downside, bracing can cause the joint can stiffen as it is not being used as much. This reduced mobility can mean that when it’s not braced it can be more painful. Bracing is good for the short term to help give the joint a break and reduce inflammation but isn’t always the best long-term option.
Custom orthotics
Custom orthotics work extremely well for arthritis. Not just in the feet, but are also very effective for the knees, and hips and can be for the lower back as well. They do this by redistributing pressure, changing ground reaction forces and changing the angles of the legs and feet. They can help reduce movement where needed, open up joint spaces, provide cushioning and more.
Strengthening
Usually, when it comes to people that have OA they are typically older; have had more stress placed on their joints and are also weaker. This means that they will typically need lots of strengthening. We need to target the most important. Physical assessments from physiotherapists allow the best and most specific exercise prescription to occur, thus allowing the most improvements within the shortest period and easy to manage for clients.
Injections
There are many different types of injections available for arthritis. A few include prolotherapy, Synvisc, cortisone, and local anaesthetic. At the clinic, our podiatrists perform local anesthetic injections into arthritis of the big toe and perform mobilisation. This helps free up the joint, increases mobility and breaks down some of the arthritis. This requires a few weekly appointments. Together with orthotics, this is extremely effective in reducing pain and increasing mobility in the joint.
Other treatments may include Surgery, anti-inflammatories, footwear, custom orthotics, mobilisation, heat, pain medication and more
If you are interested in seeing how we can help you contact our clinic today for more information.
