Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis can affect almost any joint in your body, including your knees. In addition to pain and swelling, you're likely to have aching and stiffness, especially when you get up in the morning or after periods of inactivity; loss of motion in your knees and eventually deformity of the knee joints.

Rheumatoid arthritis usually affects both knees at the same time. Although it's a chronic disease, it tends to vary in severity. Periods of increased disease activity called flare-ups often alternate with periods of remission.

There is no known cure for rheumatoid arthritis. To date, the goal of treatment in rheumatoid arthritis is to reduce joint inflammation and provide pain relief, maximize joint function, and prevent joint destruction and deformity. The treatment of rheumatoid arthritis optimally involves a combination of patient education, rest and exercise, joint protection, medications, and occasionally surgery. KNEEHAB® when used as part of your exercise programme will optimise your treatment therapy, restoring your strength and joint movement with maximum control. Early treatment of rheumatoid arthritis results in better outcomes.

The quadriceps muscle is the most important stabilizer of the knee. If you suffer from rheumatoid arthritis the resultant pain and swelling often cause disuse, which leads to muscle weakness and joint stiffness. An essential component of your therapy is strengthening of the quadriceps muscle and KNEEHAB® is ideal for this purpose.

KNEEHAB® is an innovative and clinically proven, garment-based Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) device. It is designed specifically to treat quadriceps atrophy (thigh muscle wastage) that arises from being unable to exercise effectively. It re-educates the muscle by sending gentle electrical pulses through pads placed on the surface of the skin. This electrical stimulation applied to the motor nerve strengthens the quadriceps muscle through cycles of contraction and relaxation.

It is recommended that KNEEHAB® be used in conjunction with voluntary exercise in order to optimize and control your rehabilitation.