GLA:D program for painful hip and knee osteoarthritis

*This post is written at a basic level so that everybody can understand it.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a condition where our joints change shape slightly and may feel stiff and become painful to use. OA is most commonly found in the fingers, hips, and knees, and it’s common in people who have had a past injury to their knees. Many people over the age of 40 begin to develop OA, and the condition becomes more common in the population as we age. OA needs to be diagnosed by your doctor or physiotherapist based on certain clinical criteria, which may include receiving x-rays of the affected joints.

For many years, the treatment for knee and hip OA has been just to manage the pain until the joint becomes so dysfunctional that a hip or knee joint surgery is performed. Now, the best evidence shows that methods of exercise management of hip and knee OA are effective for reducing pain, increasing function, and avoiding surgery for OA. The exercise program with strong evidence for reducing the disability caused by OA is called GLA:D.

GLA:D stands for Good Life with osteoArthritis Denmark (since the program was developed in Denmark). GLA:D consists of a 7 week program run by a licensed and registered professional such as a Chiropractor or Physiotherapist. In the first week, GLA:D participants attend 2 education sessions to learn all about OA. The purpose of these sessions is to fully understand the condition and empower participants to know what to do about it. This is followed by 6 weeks of group exercise sessions twice per week using specific exercises which target the OA joints. Exercising in a group allows for comradery between participants and group problem solving on living with OA. Objective functional tests are performed and measured at the beginning and the end of the program so that the participants can see how much they’ve improved. Most people report good or excellent satisfaction with their knee and hip OA symptoms after the program at 3 and 12 months after beginning the program. Some of my patients have even cancelled their booked knee and hip surgeries after completing in the program!

To learn more about GLA:D, what to expect with GLA:D, and to find a clinic near you which offers GLA:D, check out the official website here: https://gladcanada.ca/

Because the program is run by a Chiropractor or Physiotherapist, the cost of the program can usually be billed to your extended health benefits.

I offer and run the GLA:D hip and knee program at my clinic in Calgary. If you have questions about GLA:D please feel free to reach out to me using the contact page.