Joint Academy – a digital treatment for chronic joint pain

Osteoarthritis is one of the most common joint diseases in the world and causes reduced function as well as pain in different joints. It is also a disease that appears gradually. Many people affected, for example, with osteoarthritis in the knee, initially become aware of it when they put severe strain on the joint. If the disease is untreated it will deteriorate over time. Pain will also develop when the person is at rest. Our knees are joints under extreme strain because we put our entire bodyweight on them. They are not protected as well as other joints either, such as our shoulders. As a result, osteoarthritis treatment should begin as soon as it has been diagnosed. One option for treating hip and knee osteoarthritis is Joint Academy.

Osteoarthritis treatment for knees and hips

Osteoarthritis in the hip is an osteoarthritic condition which is expected to increase in the future. Common signs of the disease include problems bending your leg to put on your socks or rotating your leg to get out of the car. If you are affected by osteoarthritis in the hip joint, it is worth knowing that the disease can be treated without any major adverse effects. The pain and stiffness that accompany osteoarthritis in the hip can often be alleviated if you introduce daily exercise and movement into your lifestyle.

Sometimes, pain relievers are needed to alleviate the pain caused by the disease. However, these pain relievers should never be seen as a permanent solution for osteoarthritis, they are just a complement. Regular exercise to strengthen the muscles surrounding the affected area is the best way to counteract osteoarthritis. For example, this can be done with a physiotherapist, who can give you tailored exercises for osteoarthritis to do at home. It may take a few weeks or months before you notice any results from the exercise, but it has a positive effect for most people.

Osteoarthritis treatment with Joint Academy

If you are looking for tailored exercises, there are several different options, for example you can attend one of the many osteoarthritis classes available in Sweden, or you can download the Joint Academy app. The app allows the person affected to participate in a program with tailored exercises for osteoarthritis to do at home.

The app works like an extension of a local medical center, in other words, you can talk to an orthopedic doctor and have a diagnosis confirmed on-line. Payment also takes place in the same way as at a health center. If the patient is exempt from payments or is older than 85, it is completely free of charge.

When you first download the app, the first step is to talk to a physiotherapist and set a target. If you are not sure whether you are suffering from osteoarthritis, you can first choose to have an on-line phone consultation with an orthopedic doctor who is highly likely to be able to make the right diagnosis. A treatment program will follow, including different exercises to perform daily. You can also measure progress and chat with a physiotherapist in the app. Of course, you can continue with the exercises for as long as you want. You will experience the best results if you continue to have an active lifestyle.

Operation as osteoarthritis treatment

Even if exercise helps in most cases, in terms of osteoarthritis treatment an operation may be advisable in a few situations. The operation involves replacing your old joint with a prosthesis. It can reduce the pain and joint discomfort significantly and sometimes may eliminate it completely. However, an operation should always be seen as a last resort as undergoing an operation is not entirely risk-free.

Continue reading about physiotherapy.