Osteoarthritis is the most frequent musculoskeletal pathology in the world. In Spain, it affects more than 7 million people. And knee osteoarthritis or gonarthrosis is one of the most frequent locations.
“The prevalence in our country is 10.2% (14% women and 5.7% men), and it must be taken into account that the knee is a load-bearing joint that supports weight when doing basic activities such as walking, climbing and go down stairs or sit down,” explains Dr. Raquel Almodóvar, rheumatologist of the .
Sport does not cause osteoarthritis
A fairly general idea is that practicing sports on a regular basis can cause osteoarthritis.
Well, rheumatology experts explain that there is no clear scientific evidence that physical activity or sport itself condition the onset of osteoarthritis.
Another thing is if we talk about the ‘overuse’ made by the elite athletes of the joints, in some cases due to misalignment, previous injuries or other disorders. In them it can lead to deterioration of the joint and osteoarthritis appear at an early age.
In this sense, Dr. Almodóvar insists that:
“Science has not shown that sport is a trigger for the onset of osteoarthritis. On the contrary, high-quality scientific evidence has shown that physical exercise is universally recommended as first-line treatment in patients with knee osteoarthritis, since it it does not deteriorate the cartilage or increase inflammation, but rather has a protective effect.”
So… If I have knee osteoarthritis, can I exercise?
Correctly applied exercise is one of the safest treatments, and has few adverse effects for people with knee pain.
Physical activity and therapeutic exercise carried out correctly, in addition to the beneficial effects already mentioned, improve pain and reduce limitation in daily activities. And they hardly produce side effects.
You might think that by exercising you could increase pain or even damage cartilage, already deteriorated by osteoarthritis.
Well, the (SER) specialists clarify that, although it is true that initially the pain may increase a bit while it is being performed, it is mild and disappears in a few weeks.
In addition, they point out that there are studies that show that the effect of exercise on pain is similar to that produced if the patient takes an anti-inflammatory.
And to this we must add the effect on physical function, which is greater with physical exercise.
What is known is that by carrying out the exercises, adapted to the condition of each patient, the vast majority of those affected by osteoarthritis observe a Pain relief in a week or two.
Finally, it is important to note that the physical exercise Avoid weight gain caused by immobility due to pain caused by osteoarthritis of the knee. And as Dr. Almodóvar warns:
“Obesity and other components of the metabolic syndrome, such as high blood pressure and diabetes, are risk factors or comorbidities associated with osteoarthritis. Likewise, there has been an increase in mortality -mainly from cardiovascular causes- in people with osteoarthritis Therefore, the practice of physical exercise is a great ally for these patients”.
What kind of exercises should patients with knee osteoarthritis perform?
Both physical activity (walking, climbing stairs, walking, playing sports) and therapeutic exercise are very important in knee osteoarthritis.
Of course, always adapted to the clinical situation and the previous level of physical fitness.
The two types of exercise that have been shown to be most effective in scientific studies are aerobic or cardiovascular exercise and strengthening exercises, according to SER experts.
Regarding aerobic or cardiovascular exercises, rheumatologists consider that should be done at least 30 minutes each day.
If the symptoms are mild, walking is a highly recommended activity. But if they are more pronounced, at first exercises that load or imply an impact on the knee should not be performed. In this case, the best would be the exercise bike or swimming.
Strengthening exercises, on the other hand, are indicated for both mild and more advanced osteoarthritis.
And it is good to know that the reference muscle in knee osteoarthritis is the quadriceps. So any exercise intended to strengthen it is essential.
Other muscles to pay attention to in these cases are the hamstrings (located on the back of the thigh), responsible for bending or flexing the leg. Reinforce it to give greater stability to the knee.
If we add to this some practices that strengthen the hip muscles (abductors or extensors), the symptoms of knee osteoarthritis will gradually improve.