Martial Arts – Fighting Arthritis
November 06, 2005
Guardian
The traditional Chinese exercise of Tai Chi can relieve the pain of arthritis of the knee, according to a new study. After a 12-week course of Tai Chi, people also had less difficulty with everyday tasks such as using the stairs.
What do we know already?
Osteoarthritis of the knee is very common in older adults. Among those over the age of 55, an estimated 10 percent have frequent knee pain caused by this joint disease, which can also lead to stiffness, limited movement, and a decreased quality of life.
Many people rely on painkillers to cope with the pain of osteoarthritis. Although exercise and physiotherapy can help, the improvements are often modest. However, specialists think Tai Chi is one type of exercise that might be particularly helpful.
Tai Chi features slow, rhythmic movements designed to bring about mental relaxation and enhance balance, strength, and flexibility. For people with osteoarthritis of the knee, this mind-body focus might improve their physical symptoms as well as helping them cope better mentally. Researchers have done a long-term study to learn more.
What does the new study say?
The study compared two groups of people aged 55 or older. One group met twice weekly for Tai Chi classes. The other group met twice weekly for general wellness instruction and stretching exercises. Both groups were asked to practise their exercises at home for at least 20 minutes a day.
At the end of 12 weeks, people in the Tai Chi group had a 75 percent drop in their pain, on average, and a 72 percent improvement in their ability to do everyday tasks (such as using stairs). People in the wellness and stretching group also reported improvements, but these were much lower than in the Tai Chi group.
The researchers used questionnaires to score people’s symptoms, as well as their mental state, quality of life, and other indicators of wellbeing. Besides doing better on pain and physical function, the Tai Chi group also had greater improvements in depression and overall health.
The researchers followed up with participants 24 and 48 weeks after the start of the study. Less than half of the people in each group still did their exercises at 48 weeks, and much of the differences between the groups had diminished by this time. However, the Tai Chi group continued to have significantly better depression scores, suggesting these improvements might be longer lasting.
