Can you walk with bone on bone knee arthritis

Options
Blueskyday68
Blueskyday68 Member Posts: 95
in Chat to our Helpline Team

Should you still walk with bone on bone knee arthritis I walk everyday but I don't know if I'm doing any damage or not

Comments

  • sunnyside2
    sunnyside2 Member Posts: 131
    Options

    yes. I have bone on bone and walk. its already wrecked- walking will improve health and muscle mass round the bad joint. not walking means muscles shrivel and pain increases

  • helpline_team
    helpline_team Posts: 3,490
    Options

    Hi Blueskyday68,

    Thank you for posting on the Helpline forum about walking with bone on bone knee arthritis. Sunnyside2 has given a helpful response to your post.

    I am sorry to hear that you have arthritis in your knee which has progressed to bone on bone. It sounds as if you have osteoarthritis (OA) and the cartilage in your knee joint has thinned and worn away. This can clearly be seen on an X-ray as loss of joint space. Osteoarthritis causes thinning and wearing away of the joint cartilage and the surfaces of the joint become rougher, which means that the knee doesn’t move as smoothly as it should and feels painful and stiff. This can change the way you walk and carry your weight.

    It is worth bearing in mind, that even if an X-ray shows severe OA, bone on bone, the level of pain and reduced mobility can vary from person to person. The symptoms experienced are very individual. Some people will struggle to walk more than others.

    It is very important to keep moving if you have OA of the knee and to stay as mobile as your pain allows, but you do need to find the right balance between activity and rest. Range of movement and strengthening exercises are important as well as low impact aerobic exercise which includes walking as well as cycling and swimming.

    You could ask your GP to refer you to a physiotherapist for advice about mobility and exercise. Referral to a specialist may be worth considering too, if this has not been done already.

    A healthy balanced diet and maintaining a healthy weight will help to put less strain on your joints.

    If at any point you would like to talk things through informally and in confidence about your arthritis, you are welcome to call our Free Helpline on 0800 520 0520 weekdays 9am – 6pm.

    I hope the information given below will be of some help. 

    https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/conditions/osteoarthritis-of-the-knee/
    https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/exercising-with-arthritis/exercises-for-healthy-joints/exercises-for-the-knees/

    Best wishes,

    Fiona, Helpline Advisor 

Back to top

Categories