BRIGHTON, ENGLAND (EGMN) –Although patients with rheumatoid arthritis may be aware that regular exercise is good for them, many are afraid to be physically active for fear of damaging their joints.
Other results of an online survey show that a large percentage of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are unsure of what exercises they can or should perform, and they feel that health care professionals do not always have adequate knowledge to advise them.
“Exercise is now a very important component within the management of RA,” Ms. Rebecca-Jane Law of the School of Sport, Health, and Exercise Sciences at Bangor (Wales) University said April 12, at the British Society for Rheumatology Annual Conference .
“The benefits of high-intensity exercise in RA include improvements in aerobic capacity, strength, physical function, and psychosocial well-being,” she added. Ms. Law noted that the use of exercise is a far cry from when bed-rest and splinting was advised back in the 1960s (Ann. Rheum. Dis. 1963;22:91-9) and that the view that exercise might detrimentally affect disease activity or cause exacerbation had been refuted.
To read the rest of the article: http://inews.idsk.com/viewer/story.php?CLIENT=INFOMAILER&NEWSID=imn042820111107144711Good article! Patients with R A should not be afraid to exercise because according to an article by the John Hopkins Arthritis centre "Psychological readiness to begin exercising is also an important consideration. Theories of behavior change suggest that people vary widely in their readiness to adopt new behaviors. Up to 40% of individuals may be in the "precontemplative stage" where they remain essentially unaware of the problem and have not yet thought about change. For these individuals, realistic goals for exercise counseling are to increase awareness of the importance of physical activity and to personalize information about the benefits that can be anticipated. For those who express a willingness to be more active, a medical history and physical exam is advised. Specifically, the evaluation should assess the severity and extent of joint involvement, overall level of cardiovascular conditioning and presence of other comorbid conditions"