Improve Knee Osteoarthritis Pain with Exercise

An estimated 14 million people in the U.S. have knee osteoarthritis (OA), and, among adults age 45 and older, a higher percentage of women than men are diagnosed with the condition, according to the Arthritis Foundation.

Knee OA occurs when the cartilage has worn away on the ends of the two bones that make up the knee joint. In healthy knees, a gel-like substance called synovial fluid lubricates the joints, allowing the bones to glide over each other. As you get older, the synovial fluid in your knee joints may become thinner, which allows the bones to rub against each other, causing the cartilage to become rough and eventually wear away. The resultant rubbing of bone on bone can cause pain, stiffness, swelling, and sometimes the formation of bone spurs.

Reduce Pain With Exercise

If you have pain and stiffness due to knee OA, you may think that exercising will cause more pain, but the reverse is true: Exercise is an effective treatment for reducing knee pain due to OA. When you aren’t moving your knees, some of the synovial fluid is absorbed by the cartilage that surrounds your knee, but when you are moving, the synovial fluid comes out of the cartilage and circulates in your knee joints.

Your knee joint is made up of bones, cartilage, tendons, and ligaments, so when you do exercises to strengthen your knees, you are actually exercising the muscles that support and stabilize your knees, including the large muscles of your upper thighs—your quadriceps and hamstrings—among others.

In addition to reducing pain and stiffness, knee exercises can help improve balance, decrease your risk of falls, and help you maintain mobility, all of which will help you maintain your independence and your quality of life.

Other Causes of Knee Pain

Although OA is the most common cause, knee pain also may be caused by an injury that damages one of the structures in the knee, such as a ligament, a tendon, or the kneecap itself. You are more likely to experience knee pain if you are overweight, your leg muscles are weak, certain muscles in your legs, hips, and core are tight, you’ve had a previous knee injury, or you engage in activities that repeatedly put stress on your knees, such as jogging, running, and jumping.

If you suffer from chronic knee pain but you have not been diagnosed with knee OA, before you begin knee exercises, see a doctor, who can determine the cause of your pain and advise if knee exercises are recommended for you.

If you have knee OA and your doctor recommends exercise, the activities here can strengthen and stretch the muscles that support your knees and help relieve your symptoms.

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