Osteoarthritis

Supportive Management

  • Maintain a healthy weight. This helps reduce the weight carried by the joints (especially those on the hips, knees, and joints of the feet), thereby reducing joint pain.
    • Calculate body mass index (BMI) and see if it’s within normal range (18.5 to 24.99). If BMI is greater than 24.99, take steps to reduce weight. Lose weight gradually, around 0.5 – 1 kg per week. BMI can be calculated using the formula: kg/meter2.
    • Perform exercises. In osteoarthritis, exercise is the best non-pharmacologic intervention for enhancing joint mobility and reducing pain. In addition, exercise helps maintain healthy weight, which in turn, helps decrease the strain on the weight-bearing joints.
      • Perform 20 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise per day (around 150 minutes a week). Such exercises include brisk walking, bicycling with minimal effort, ball room dancing, general gardening, heavy cleaning (e.g. vacuum cleaning, mopping the floor), and playing non-competitive badminton.
      • Perform range-of-motion exercises to decrease joint stiffness and maintain joint flexibility. Please visit the following link for a video guide on range of motion exercises appropriate for persons with osteoarthritis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VR7pbu9ol0k
    • Consume the recommended calorie intake as prescribed by dietician and/or physician.
  • When resting, support and position properly neck and back.

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Herbal Medicine

Luya

  • Roast or heat a slice of luya and apply externally on painful area. Another way to prepare it is to heat thin slices of luya with oil. After letting the oil cool, apply it on painful area.

Bawang, Luya, and Siling Labuyo Oil

  • Heat in coconut oil equal parts of chopped bawang, luya, and crushed siling labuyo. The proportion for coconut oil and the combined dried ingredients (bawang, luya, and siling labuyo) is 1:1. For 10-15 minutes, heat the mixture together, and then strain. Apply the oil externally on painful area.

Tanglad Roots with Coconut Oil Liniment

  • Crush the tanglad roots in coconut oil. Apply externally on painful area.

Lubigan Rhizome Liniment

  • Crush the dried rhizome and mix it with oil. Apply externally on painful area.

Pandan Liniment

  • Pandan or pandang mabango can either be used. Crush the leaves of the plant and mix them with oil. Apply externally on painful area.

Sulasi

  • Pound the leaves and apply its juice externally on painful area.

Other Complementary and Alternative Therapy

  • Acupressure
    • Acupressure is traditional healing art which uses the fingers, palms, elbows, or feet to apply pressure on the body’s healing points (acupoints). This is believed to restore the life force energy of the body or qi, which, in turn, improves health.
    • Please visit the following links containing a video demonstrations on alleviating hip pain and knee pain using acupressure:
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5DKGuIp40w
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFnaFuSlAuY
  • Acupuncture
    • This should be done under the guidance of a trained acupuncture practitioner.
    • Acupuncture involves the insertion of fine needles through the skin and on the body’s healing points which is believed to restore the life force energy or qi, which, in turn, improves health.
  • Deep Friction Massage
    • Massage, through the application of moderate pressure to the skin, muscles, and connective tissues, stimulates pressure receptors which cause the brain to release neurotransmitters that induce relaxation and decrease the sensation of pain.
    • Please visit the following link containing a video demonstration on deep friction massage intended for persons with osteoarthritis: http://exploreim.ucla.edu/video/acupressure-points-for-neck-pain-and-headache/

Recommendation

Consult Doctor

  • For proper diagnosis and pharmacologic management of the condition.

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