We train diseased joints of the hands

Proven content

The strength of the grip and the precision of movements – it determines the efficiency of your hands. You have sick joints – you have no choice. You need to exercise a lot to increase the strength of the muscles acting on the diseased joint and increase its range of motion.

Osteoarthritis is one of the most common causes of being disabled. Car accidents, strokes or even heart disease do not take such a plentiful, tragic harvest. It is estimated that degenerative changes in joints occur in about 2 million Poles, and the number of people suffering from rheumatic ailments may be even twice as high.

Although it is difficult to find a disease that could be better described, there is no effective cure for it yet. Degenerative changes in joints begin to be perceived in the context of a civilization disease (i.e. caused by the development of civilization and occurring most often in highly developed countries), but even in the skeletons from archaeological excavations similar distortions were found. Our distant ancestors also suffered from the degradation of articular cartilage, but less often than we do. The development of the disease is greatly facilitated by two nightmares of our time: overweight and a sedentary lifestyle. Fortunately, it is also one of those diseases in which more depends on the patient’s determination than on the skill of the doctor.

I will give my soul for medicine

In Stephen King’s novel “Sklepik z marzenia”, set in the 80s, a woman tormented by the pain of her hands affected by degenerative changes sells her soul to the devil in exchange for a healing bracelet that relieves her symptoms. If she had come to the doctor’s office today, the doctor would not have offered her healing jewelry, but would have ordered regular exercises to improve the affected joints.

This is because no orthopedic device (stabilizers, bands, stabilizing orthoses) will provide such a good support for a sick joint as strong muscles, ligaments and flexible joints. It is hard to find a disease in which it is more true to say that physical activity can not only work miracles, but help a lot. Properly performed exercises recommended by a physiotherapist will not only help slow down the development of the disease, but also relieve pain symptoms on an ongoing basis. The name kinesitherapy, i.e. treatment with movement, is not accidental. Exercise should be treated as a form of therapy – treatment is as important as possible surgical intervention or pharmacotherapy, and not as an additional doctor’s recommendation.

Rehabilitation? Mainly independent

The research carried out in 2006 at the Department of Physiotherapy, Rheumatology and Rehabilitation of the Medical University of Poznań shows that most patients who performed the recommended exercises for only 20 days experienced an improvement in their health. Improvement in the range of motion in the affected joints in all planes and a reduction in the intensity of pain were noted. It is worth knowing that the help of a rehabilitator is needed only in the first stages of treatment with movement. Once we know what exercises to perform, in what order and for how long, we can (and should) take care of improving our health at home. Conscientious exercise of exercises is important not only for the physical condition, because the psychological aspect is also important.

It hurts, it hurts, it still hurts

Doctors rarely mention that chronic pain and disability change a patient’s personality. In psychological terminology, the term “homilopathy” is used to denote an abnormal development of personality as a result of a chronic somatic disease. How much suffering from joint pain changes our perception of the world and some features depends largely on us. It is known that people who passively succumb to disability show indifference to social contacts after a few years, rarely take the initiative, become distrustful and more conflicting than before the disease. The research carried out by a psychiatry specialist, Prof. dr. hab. Andrzej Jakubik shows that even people with a short period of disability show personality changes – awkwardness, lack of ambition, tendency to resignation, distance.

Illness and accompanying pain, however, do not mean judgment. Rarely can a medical condition turn an optimistic person into a grouchy recluse if… she doesn’t want it. Regularly performing the exercises recommended by the therapist can help in this context as well. Each repetition of the exercise proves that we want to do something for ourselves and do not agree to the development of disability. Arthritis is associated with being overweight. Regular exercise is no longer a choice but a necessity. Each kilogram less means less burden on the affected joint. As exercise is effective, we feel that we are taking control of the disease.

Nothing improves the mood like a sense of victory. When we manage to achieve even a small success in the field of fighting our own weakness and limitations, victory gains exceptional significance.

Do you have sick joints of your hands? You can do these exercises alone at home.

The presented exercises are to increase the range of motion in the sore joint, strengthen the strength of its muscles, and make the ligaments more flexible. All this to endure the stiffness causing pain and to restore the functions of the affected joint as best as possible.

We strengthen the range of motion in the wrist

We sit down at the table, put our hands on the table top in such a way that our wrists rest on its edge, and hands hang loosely towards the floor. We slowly raise our hands from time to time, pulling it upwards as much as possible. Exercise increases the range of motion in the wrist joint and strengthens its muscles.

We practice the hook grip

We join hands, grasping them with all fingers, and try as hard as possible to stretch the hooked fingers outward. In this way, we exercise the muscles and stretch the joints.

We increase the range of finger movement

Place your hand with your fingers spread on the table. We try to move one finger towards the other one by one. If it is difficult for us, we can help ourselves with the other hand. This exercise improves the range of motion of the fingers of the diseased hand.

We train grip strength

We put the forearm on the table, the hand is placed on a circular object with a fairly large diameter (rubber or sand-filled ball, sponge), which will allow us to support the transverse arch of the hand. We squeeze the object and loosen the grip, that is, we perform a bend and extension of the interphalangeal joints. As the exercises progress, we reduce the diameter of the gripped object.

We improve the mobility of the fingers

We rest our hand on the book. We try to turn its pages one by one with each finger. Remember: the more and more carefully we practice precise movements, the better for our sick joints.

We improve the quality of the grip

We try to successively and precisely touch (and then press) the thumb with the fingertip of each finger. In this way, we practice the quality of the grip (in this case the pincers and the fingertip), i.e. the ability to adjust the hand to the held object – both the cup and the match.

Text: Anna Kowalska