Reuters AlertNet Full site
Homepage | Newsdesk | NGO Latest | Crisis briefings | Country profiles | MediaWatch | Jobs | Alerting | Login

NEWSDESK

Tai chi helps cut pain of knee arthritis -US study
26 Oct 2008 00:01:17 GMT
 Source: Reuters
WASHINGTON, Oct 25 (Reuters) - The traditional Chinese form of exercise known as tai chi can help reduce pain and physical impairment in people who have knee arthritis, researchers said on Saturday.

In their study, one group of people in their 60s with severe knee osteoarthritis performed tai chi for an hour twice a week for 12 weeks while a similar group did the same amount of conventional stretching exercises over the same period.

Those who did tai chi experienced greater pain reduction, less depression and improvements in physical function and overall health, researchers led by Dr. Chenchen Wang of Tufts Medical Center in Boston reported at a meeting of the American College of Rheumatology in San Francisco.

"Tai chi mind-body exercise appears to provide an important approach for self-care and self-management for knee (osteoarthritis)," Wang said in a statement.

The study provided the latest evidence that tai chi may offer benefits for people with arthritis. The Arthritis Foundation advocacy group recommends it for improving the quality of life of people with arthritis.

Tai chi is a form of exercise developed in China centuries ago. With tai chi, a person slowly performs a series of postures or movements that are low impact and put little stress on the muscles and joints. It can improve muscle function, balance and flexibility.

Osteoarthritis, the most common type of arthritis, develops when cartilage in the joints of the body wears down over time. It is incurable and worsens over time. Osteoarthritis in the knee can cause chronic pain when a person stands or walks.

Forty people took part in the study, and Wang said the findings should be confirmed in a larger study. Those who took part in the study had knee osteoarthritis for about a decade. (Reporting by Will Dunham; Editing by Julie Steenhuysen and Peter Cooney)


AlertNet news is provided by
Email this article       Send comments

NGO latest

•  Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance: ADRA Among the Most Transparent
ADRA - International

•  UMCOR Hotline for October 21, 2008
UMCOR - USA

•  International Day for the Eradication of Poverty: ADRA Empowers Communities
ADRA - International

•  Aid Agencies Send U.S. Food Shipment to North Korea
WV - USA

•  Hunger vs. Financial Crisis
Concern Worldwide U.S.

MORE >>

Latest news

•  Tai chi helps cut pain of knee arthritis -US study

•  Israeli election seen after Livni calls off talks

•  Israel's Livni calls off coalition talks-report

•  FACTBOX-Security developments in Iraq, Oct 25

•  Iraqi party suspends ties with U.S. over raid

MORE >>

AlertNet news is provided by

Background information

Facts & figures
United States of America China

Related articles

Breaking stories
 Tai chi helps cut pain of knee arthritis -US study (1 minute ago)

Israeli election seen after Livni calls off talks (1 minute ago)

AlertNet insight
 Annan says financial crisis must not undermine action on hunger (1 minute ago)

Aid agency news feed
 Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance: ADRA Among the Most Transparent (1 minute ago)

Blogs
 CLIMATE CHANGE BLOG: Talking our planet into crisis (1 minute ago)

Maps
 Intense hurricane Norbert (1 minute ago)


Del.icio.us Del.icio.us  |   Digg Digg  |   NewsVine NewsVine  |   Reddit Reddit   
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-10-25T123032Z_01_TAI112_RTRIDSP_2_TAIWAN-CHINA_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/TAI112.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-10-25T112004Z_01_TAI114_RTRIDSP_2_TAIWAN-CHINA_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/TAI114.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-10-25T110846Z_01_TAI111_RTRIDSP_2_TAIWAN-CHINA_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/TAI111.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-10-25T110613Z_01_TAI110_RTRIDSP_2_TAIWAN-CHINA_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/TAI110.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-10-25T110333Z_01_TAI09_RTRIDSP_2_TAIWAN-CHINA_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/TAI09.htm

A demonstrator waves a flag with the words reading "Taiwan" during an anti-China protest in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei October 25, 2008. Close to half a million people ...


More pictures | Galleries
Disclaimers |  Copyright |  Privacy |  Contact Us |  Feedback |  About Us |  RSS XML

Last updated:Sun Oct 26 00:03:49 2008