Recently published research into exercise therapies for knee osteoarthritis has found taichi and qigong can reduce pain.
Wuqinxi (or Five Animals Frolic) qigong is a traditional Chinese exercise designed by a famous physician Hua Tuo at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty (25 to 220 AD). It can increase muscle tone and blood flow, thereby relieving pain. Long-term Wuqinxi can significantly enhance the physical function of chronically ill patients, improving their strength, bone density, balance, joint flexibility, mental vitality, and psychological confidence.
A randomized controlled trial showed that from pretest to follow-up, knee osteoarthritis patients in the Wuqinxi group showed significantly improved, knee flexion, and extension strength, timed up and go test, 6-min walk test, 30s chair stand test, and their pain was much relieved. This research showed that Wuqinxi promotes balance and pain relief in knee osteoarthritis patients more effectively than traditional physiotherapy exercises. Also that the stability test, the static postural stability test, and the dynamic fall index test results of elderly, female knee osteoarthritis patients improved after 24 weeks of Wuqinxi. In short, Wuqinxi can enhance the balance of knee osteoarthritis patients, reduce pain, and increase muscle strength.
Taichi, a gentle aerobic exercise, is derived from ancient Chinese martial arts that can relax the body and mind. Compared with other conventional physical therapy, taichi has a better treatment effect on reducing depression. A clinical experiment showed that taichi can change knee osteoartritis patients’ gait and plantar pressure load pattern during walking. Taichi can be an excellent physical training strategy for improving postural control and walking function in individuals with knee osteoarthritis. Taichi also has positive effects on muscular activities and proprioception of the leg and ankle, and it can improve balance on both rigid and foam surfaces.
The research found that taichi can significantly reduce pain and dysfunction, improve knee osteoarthritis patients’ physical and mental health, which can be an alternative to non-drug therapies in rehabilitation programs. In conclusion, Taichi is a popular mind-body exercise, which can relieve pain, reduce knee osteoarthritis dysfunction, and has significant effects on improving depression, training gait, and postural stability. Noting, the effect of taichi is slow, it always takes more than 2 weeks to get the effect.
https://doi.org/10.47191/ijmra/v7-i08-16
If you are looking for a taichi program to improve knee osteoarthritis, try a Wulong class today. Click here to see all our class locations and timings.