LONDON

by health-newswire.com reporters

US studies suggest that the pain experienced by people with osteoarthritis when they first start exercising is short-lived – a discovery that could encourage more patients to stay active.

Previous research has shown that regular exercise can provide long-term pain relief for people with osteoarthritis of the knee. However, many patients find it hard to start an exercise program because of the pain.

Now studies led by Dr Brian Focht of East Carolina University show that the increased pain felt immediately after exercise tends to fade quickly.

“Explaining to patients that the increased pain they feel right after exercising isn’t long-lasting – and helping them cope with that temporary increase – may help them stick with an exercise program long enough to obtain [a] long-term reduction in pain,” he says.

The study, published in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine, involved 32 adults aged over 60 who had osteoarthritis in one or both knees. The participants were overweight or obese – factors known to exacerbate the condition – and reported that their knee pain limited their physical ability and made daily activities more difficult.

Researchers asked each participant to record how much pain they felt at certain times for six consecutive days. Every other day, participants engaged in a one-hour period of programmed exercise.

In general, participants rated their daily knee pain as weak to moderate. Results showed that, for the most part, pain followed a similar daily pattern whether the participants exercised or rested. The exception was that when patients exercised they experienced a significant increase in pain immediately afterwards.

However, this usually abated in the evening, indicating that the pain caused by exercise did not tend to linger, say researchers.

“Given that exercise training has been found to be beneficial for the reduction of pain, our findings have significant implications for the role of exercise therapy in patients with knee osteoarthritis,” says Dr Focht.

While the findings should encourage people with osteoarthritis to take up exercise, Dr Focht says that patients “experiencing distressing or excruciating pain”, or those who are “novice exercisers” may have to be more cautious. Additional research is needed to characterize the post-exercise pain response of such individuals, he says.

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