Osteoarthritis is a widespread disease—and unfortunately, it is not just a question of age. Being overweight, too little or no exercise, poor eating habits, and prolonged incorrect or excessive strain: all of these can lead to osteoarthritis in the joints. When pain occurs in joints such as the knee or hip, osteoarthritis often comes to mind – and surgery on the affected joint. In Germany in particular, a large number of people undergo surgery for osteoarthritis. Many of these operations are unnecessary. Targeted exercise has been proven to prevent joint surgery. Surgery should therefore only be an option – and always the last resort.
Joint surgery is not always necessary. Exercise can help prevent osteoarthritis or provide targeted treatment for symptoms. More healthy years of life – that is also our goal for you at FPZ.
Each joint consists of two bones that are connected to each other in a movable manner. There is a gap between the bones. On the bones: cartilage, a kind of protective layer. In a joint free of osteoarthritis, the cartilage layer forms a protective layer between the bone and the joint socket, preventing them from rubbing against each other. The cartilage also functions as a kind of shock absorber, distributing the load evenly across the entire joint. In osteoarthritis, this layer of cartilage is worn away. This can lead to pain, which causes many sufferers to stop putting weight on the affected joint. But this is exactly the wrong thing to do. In principle, osteoarthritis can develop in any joint in the human body, but the most common forms are osteoarthritis of the knee joint (gonarthrosis) and hip joint (coxarthrosis), as these joints are subject to the greatest stress. Think of the cartilage in your joints as cushions. These cushions absorb shocks and prevent the bones from rubbing against each other. If a cushion, i.e., cartilage, becomes thinner or is damaged, we refer to this as osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis progresses through several stages, starting with a rough or thinned cartilage layer and progressing to “bone rubbing against bone.” Depending on the stage, osteoarthritis causes varying degrees of discomfort in the joint, usually during activities such as sports, walking, or climbing stairs. Later on, it can also occur during periods of rest, such as after getting up or sitting for long periods of time. Osteoarthritis is divided into primary and secondary osteoarthritis, depending on whether there is no clear cause or whether osteoarthritis has developed as a result of certain risk factors.
Exercise can prevent or at least slow down the breakdown of cartilage in the joint. This is because when we move, our joints produce a lubricating substance that cushions stress and at the same time promotes joint mobility. This is how exercise prevents osteoarthritis. Exercise is also effective against symptoms caused by the thinning of the ‘cushion in the joints’. In other words, wear and tear or damage to the cartilage.
Another important point is that exercise provides your cartilage with essential nutrients. Exercise also strengthens the muscles around the joint, stabilizing and relieving pressure on it.
Exercise has been proven to be the best way to combat acute osteoarthritis and prevent it from developing – whether in the knees, hips, or other joints. That is why exercise is at the heart of our programs – the FPZ GelenkFit prevention course and our FPZ HüfteKnieTherapie osteoarthritis therapy for knee or hip osteoarthritis.
At FPZ, we believe that surgery for osteoarthritis should always be the last resort. If all other treatments or therapies have been unsuccessful and you continue to experience severe pain, then surgery may be considered. This is because a new knee or hip joint may cause other problems – not to mention the general risks associated with surgery.
Surgery for osteoarthritis of the hip and knee is now considered standard practice in Germany. A corresponding number of operations are performed – often despite their avoidability. The better news is that exercise therapy offers enormous opportunities for relief. Our success rate shows that FPZ patients can reduce their pain by 30-40%. 50% of participants even exceed their own goals. This is precisely why we developed our 12-week program, which enables you to enjoy more healthy years of life. Our goal is to enable our patients to enjoy more than 500,000 additional healthy years of life by 2025.
Osteoarthritis often begins without pain. Especially in the early stages, there are often few symptoms. Osteoarthritis develops and the pain increases over time. That is why early diagnosis or clarification is so important. The earlier you treat or prevent osteoarthritis, the better.
Osteoarthritis can cause severe pain, which makes it all the more important to know how to deal with such pain. Our online course FPZ Pain ABC—either as part of your therapy or as a separately bookable course—can help you with this, providing information about pain as well as strategies and solutions.
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