Should Patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis Avoid Activities

Should Patients with AS Avoid Activities

It is commonly seen that the patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis(AS) reduce their joint activities in order to reduce or avoid their joint pain. However, is this right?
Actually, long-term making the involved joints at immobile state and avoiding activities can lead to muscle atrophy and joint cramps. By reducing use of the joints, it will increase the change of loss of joint functions.
The right way for the patients is to actively receive anti-inflammatory drug treatment to relive joint pains. At the meantime, do exercise with caution. At acute flare-up stage of Ankylosing Spondylitis, you can exercise the joints to the extent that pains don’t occur, which can help to alleviate joint cramps. After stopping joint activities, you can place the inflamed joints at proper position to prevent the occurrence of muscle cramps or deformity. In subacute or chronic stage of the disease, you will need to insist on doing stretching exercises of the four limbs, and gradually increase strength of activities. You will need to know that insisting on joint activities is very important. After remission of symptoms or discontinuing drug use, you will still need to insist on long-term exercising and try to maintain the joints at normal stable state. Functional exercise such as swimming, Tai Chi, gymnastics are suggested for the patients. But strenuous exercise such as basketball, football, etc, should be avoided.

All in all, the patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis should not completely avoid activities, which is essential for maintaining joint function in the long term. Furthermore, you will need to do exercise properly. If you are not clear what is the most suitable exercise for you, you may leave us a massage, or chat below.