There are many forms of arthritis and other rheumatic diseases. These
diseases may cause pain, stiffness, and swelling in joints and other supporting
structures of the body such as muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bones. Some
forms can also affect other parts of the body, including various internal
organs.
Many people use the word "arthritis" to refer to all rheumatic diseases.
However, the word literally means joint inflammation; that is, swelling,
redness, heat, and pain caused by tissue injury or disease in the joint. The
many different kinds of arthritis make up just a portion of all rheumatic
diseases.
Rheumatoid arthritis, the second most common form of arthritis, affects other
parts of the body besides the joints. It begins at a younger age than
osteoarthritis, causes swelling and redness in joints, and may make people feel
sick, tired, and (uncommonly) feverish. Rheumatoid arthritis affects people
differently. For some people, it lasts only a few months or a year or two and
goes away without causing any noticeable damage. Other people have mild or
moderate forms of the disease, with periods of worsening symptoms, called
flares, and periods in which they feel better, called remissions. Still others
have a severe form of the disease that is active most of the time, lasts for
many years or a lifetime, and leads to serious joint damage and disability.
Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis, especially among older
people. Sometimes it is called degenerative joint disease or osteoarthrosis.
Osteoarthritis is a joint disease that mostly affects the cartilage. Cartilage
is the slippery tissue that covers the ends of bones in a joint. Healthy
cartilage allows bones to glide over one another. It also absorbs energy from
the shock of physical movement. In osteoarthritis, the surface layer of
cartilage breaks down and wears away. This allows bones under the cartilage to
rub together, causing pain, swelling, and loss of motion of the joint. Over
time, the joint may lose its normal shape. Also, bone spurs(small growths called
osteophytes) may grow on the edges of the joint. Bits of bone or cartilage can
break off and float inside the joint space. This causes more pain and damage.
People with osteoarthritis usually have joint pain and limited movement. Unlike
some other forms of arthritis, osteoarthritis affects only joints and not
internal organs.
What Causes Arthritis Pain?
The pain of arthritis may come from different sources. These may include
inflammation of the tissue that lines the joints (synovial membrane), the
tendons, or the ligaments; muscle strain; and fatigue. A combination of these
factors contributes to the intensity of the pain.
The pain of arthritis varies greatly from person to person, for reasons that
doctors do not yet understand completely. Factors that contribute to the pain
include swelling within the joint, the amount of heat or redness present, or
damage that has occurred within the joint. In addition, activities affect pain
differently so that some patients note pain in their joints after first getting
out of bed in the morning, whereas others develop pain after prolonged use of
the joint. Each individual has a different threshold and tolerance for pain,
often affected by both physical and emotional factors. These can include
depression, anxiety, and even hypersensitivity at the affected sites due to
inflammation and tissue injury. This increased sensitivity appears to affect the
amount of pain perceived by the individual.
Magnetic treatments for arthritis
All types of arthritis respond to magnetic therapy treatments because the arthritic
disease process involves inflammation. As discussed in chapter 2 magnets reverse
the inflammatory process, which in turn alleviates the main symptoms of
arthritis:
1. Swelling
2. Pain
3. Stiffness and immobility
Magnets are not a cure for arthritis as there is currently no known cure, but
they are an extremely effective drug free treatment for the chronic symptoms of
all types of arthritic conditions.
However having said how well arthritis responds to magnetic treatment, it can be
a little bit tricky to treat a person who has arthritis in multiple locations in
the body. The reason for this is that as discussed in chapter 2 for the magnetic
field to be effective it must be placed as close to the area of injury as
possible. When a person has, for example, arthritis in the knees, hips, back and
hands, it is not possible to reach all the area with one magnetic device. The
person would need to place magnets on each area of pain to fully relieve the
arthritic symptoms.
Possible treatments for this person would be:
1. To wear high strength magnetic straps around the knees, back/hips ( usually
one strap will reach both areas) and wrists. Straps are both functional and
comfortable, plus many contain lycra to give the joint additional support.
2. To wear super strength shoe insoles, that have a magnetic field that is
strong enough to reach the knees, a high/super a strength bracelet for each hand
and use a magnetic pad behind the back whilst sitting or lying. If the person
does not feel comfortable in straps these are suitable alternatives.
3. To sleep on a magnetic mattress. The mattress will reach all areas of the
body at once and the strength of the magnetic field is so immense that the
magnetism will last for up to 16 hours after getting out of bed. This is the
easiest way to treat large areas of pain and does not necessitate the need to
wear additional magnets during the day.
Luckily there is a vast array of magnetic devices available today and most areas
of the body can be reached with an appropriate magnetic device. There is often
more than one solution available fort he treatment of multiple areas of pain and
a trained therapist will be able to advise while treatment regime will fit best
with your particular lifestyle.
In order for magnets to be effective they must be worn night and day until the
symptoms have gone, if you are given a magnetic device that do not feel
comfortable wearing or using it is unlikely that you will continue to use the
treatment for the required length of time. Without 24 hours, 7 days a weeks
exposure to the magnets it is unlikely that all of your symptoms will be
relieved and you will feel disheartened and may even believe that
magnets do not
in fact work.
Case Study - Margaret aged 65
Margaret was diagnosed with osteoarthritis of the hip and spine in October 2002.
After careful consideration Margaret’s orthopaedic consultant concluded that
Margaret was not a suitable candidate for joint replacement surgery. Margaret
was commenced on a painkilling regime that remained ineffective for the next 2
years. At each out patient review her painkilling medication was increased. By
October 2004 Margaret was taking the maximum dose of morphine sulphate tablets
daily.
Margaret was seen in out magnetic clinic in October 2004, her mobility was
severely compromised and lent heavily on 2 walking sticks, she was extremely
depressed and had trouble sleeping. Margaret’s initial pain score was 7 out of
10 and her pain had also spread form just her hips and spine, she now had
painful feet and pain in her wrists from leaning on her sticks. Margaret was
prescribed a back belt for her hips and spine, shoe insoles for her feet, straps
for her wrists and 4-6 glasses of magnetised water a day. Margaret did not feel
comfortable wearing the back belt and it was concluded that she would not comply
with the treatment if she was given the back belt, a pillow pad was prescribed
as an alternative to the belt and she was advised to use it as much as she could
during the day and all night every night.
At her 1 week review Margaret’s pain score was 0 out of 10 she explained that by
the very next day after commencing her treatment nearly all of her pain had
disappeared. Margaret was recommended to continue to use the magnetic treatment
for the following 4 weeks to ensure her symptoms had completely resolved and to
continue drinking magnetised water. Margaret requested a magnetic mattress cover
for use at night and additional straps for her knees. She continued to wear the
magnets during the day and slept on the mattress cover at night.
Margaret returned to clinic 3 weeks later extremely distraught, the pain she had
previously felt has resolved but she was now suffering with a severe grating
pain in her hip anf knee joints. We could only conclude that Margaret was now
suffering from an absence of adequate lubrication in her joints, this was partly
due to the action of the magnets removing the inflammation from around the joint
and partly due the effects of the arthritis in the joint. Margaret was
recommended to commence taking glucosamine and chrondroitin which help to repair
connective tissue and lubricate the joints. In addition Margaret was advised to
increase her intake of magnetised water by 2 glasses a day and also advised to
stop wearing her magnetic devices during the day and just use the mattress cover
at night.
Margaret was seen at 2 week intervals over the next 8 weeks and her condition
improved over time. The nutritional supplements helped with the joint
lubrication, plus Margaret found that by alternating the use of the mattress
cover and the magnetic devices worn during the day she found a happy medium. It
is impossible to say exactly why Margaret’s joints grated after using the
magnets but I can only surmise that , as her initial response to the magnetic
fields was very quick( with in 24 hours) , her body absorbs magnetic fields very
efficiently and she did not actually need the amount of magnetism that she
placed on her skin. The addition of the mattress cover which contained 100 x
2,600 gauss/260 m tesla magnets was strong enough to remove all of the
inflammation with in Margaret’s joints this left them with out any buffering
mechanism and as a result the worn edges of her joints were pressing upon
nerves.
The solution to Margaret’s dilemma was to find a dosage of magnetism that was
strong enough to penetrate into the tissues and reduce her pain but not strong
enough to completely remove the fluid from around her joints, once this was
established pain relief was once again felt.
