Arthritis 101
 Arthritis is a chronic disease that attacks the joints, particularly those that have synovial fluid, causing inflammation. Synovial fluid is what cushions the large joints of the body from having bone-to-bone contact during activity. Arthritis causes the synovial cells to reproduce rapidly which thickens the fluid cushion thus causing breakdown of the bone surfaces. Eventually, as time goes on, pain and discomfort are the results as bone rubs on bone.
There are over 100 types of arthritis and related conditions. The most prevalent are rheumatoid arthritis, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, and osteoarthritis. Rheumatoid arthritis is an inflammatory disease that leads to joint pain and disability. Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis is the most common pediatric rheumatoid disease in North America and a major cause of childhood disability. Osteoarthritis is also known as degenerative arthritis that causes joint pain, locking, creaking and stiffness.
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WSPT Treats Arthritis with Aquatic Therapy
According to the plethora of research studies conducted on people with arthritis, it has been concluded that aquatic therapy has greater success in pain reduction, improved physical function and improved quality of life than that of land therapy alone.
WSPT is the only rehabilitation practice in the area offering the HydroWorx pool that features a built-in treadmill. Patients are welcomed by 94 degrees water and can be lowered safely into and out of the pool with the chair assist.
Because patients perform therapy in water, they are able to productively workout without having to absorb the ground force that is present when running on land. The pain will be alleviated by the buoyant forces of water and joint pain is no longer an issue as they are only working with 20% of their total body weight.
http://ptjournal.apta.org/cgi/content/short/ptj.20060006v1
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WSPT Cares