Muscle Wastage

breane
breane Member Posts: 392
edited 19. Mar 2010, 08:10 in Chat to our Helpline Team archive
Hi,For a few months now I have been suffering with severe pain and stiffness in the shouders and top of arms down to the elbow plus stiffness in the neck.A steroid injection didn't help so the consultant arranged for me to see a physio which I did yesterday.The physio told me I have muscle wastage and has given me a set of exercises to do and I will be seeing him again next week.Could muscle wastage be due to the RA and OA I have? Breane.

Comments

  • butterflywings
    butterflywings Member Posts: 25
    edited 30. Nov -0001, 00:00
    Hi Breane

    My daughter has Oligarticular JIA and with that she has muscle wastage in her thighs (as the arthritis is mainly in her knees). I was quite surprised when the consultant told me this as my daughter does dancing which you would think would give her good muscles, but obviously not.

    Apparently my daughter has been over compensating her movements by using her knees and lower leg which causes other problems, it was only when the consultant told me this that I was aware.

    All the best x
  • helpline_team
    helpline_team Posts: 3,876
    edited 30. Nov -0001, 00:00
    breane wrote:
    Hi,For a few months now I have been suffering with severe pain and stiffness in the shouders and top of arms down to the elbow plus stiffness in the neck.A steroid injection didn't help so the consultant arranged for me to see a physio which I did yesterday.The physio told me I have muscle wastage and has given me a set of exercises to do and I will be seeing him again next week.Could muscle wastage be due to the RA and OA I have? Breane.

    Dear Breane

    Thank you for your posting on the forum. Muscle wastage is often the result of the muscles being unused, which can often happen with arthritis as the pain of moving around and fear of causing damage prevents people from using their muscles. Exercise though, can improve muscle strength and provide support for your joints and can help them to become more stable. To find out more about exercise and arthritis our booklet on this can be found on the following link http://www.arthritiscare.org.uk/PublicationsandResources/Listedbytype/Booklets. Also talking to your physio about this should help clarify things for you. I hope this has been helpful.

    Best Wishes
    Dawn

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