aggravates osteoarthritis more than 111 lakh knee replacement surgeries every year in the country could be avoided with by losing weight it may be a natural thing to do if you are a patient of chronic arthritis besides water exercises are gentle on the joints try taking a walk for 510 minutes around 34 times day one should also focus on healthy low calorie diet kulkarni saidwhat is osteoarthritis it is a group of mechanical abnormalities involving degradation of joints symptoms may include joint pain tenderness stiffness locking and sometimes an effusion a variety of causes hereditary developmental metabolic and mechanical deficits may initiate processes leading to loss of cartilage as a result of decreased movement secondary to pain regional muscles may atrophy and ligaments may become more laxwhat is hydrotherapy it is a medication that involves the use of water for pain relief and treatment the term encompasses a broad range of approaches and therapeutic methods that take advantage of the physical properties of water such as temperature and pressure for therapeutic purposes to stimulate blood circulation and treat the symptoms of certain diseases it is different from swimming as it involves special exercises that you do in a warmwater pool the water temperature is usually 3336c hydrotherapy is not recommended for people with heart and lung disease or a circulatory disorder besides suffering from arthritishydrotherapy sessions youll normally undergo hydrotherapy treatment in a hospitals physiotherapy department a physiotherapist will show you how to do the exercises depending on symptoms the exercises can be adjusted to help your range of movement or strength you are submerged in water either to exercise or simply to soak the healing effects of hydrotherapy are associated with the thermal effect and mechanical stimulation from the water the therapy makes use of the bodys natural reaction to hot and cold stimuli the pressure exerted on the body by water and the sensation of water against the skin the effects on the body by the water stimulate the immune system and other internal changes in the body the weightlessness of the body in water combined with the pressure it exerts is believed to have a hydrostatic effect and acts as a form of massage increasing blood circulation and releasing tight muscles and jointshow does it help the warmth of the water allows your muscles to relax and eases the pain in your joints the water supports your weight which helps relieve pain and increase the range of movement of your joints by pushing your arms and legs against the water you can also improve your muscle strength it can be beneficial for various types of arthritis including psoriatic arthritis and osteoarthritis and has no side effectshow effective is hydrotherapy scientific studies have shown that hydrotherapy can improve strength and general fitness in people with various types of arthritis the exercises can be tailored to your individual needs so you can start slowly