Arthritis Awareness Month

According to the Arthritis Foundation blog*:

  • Nearly 53 million adults have doctor-diagnosed arthritis; that number is expected to grow to 67 million by 2030.
  • Almost 300,000 babies, kids and teens have arthritis or a rheumatic condition.
  • Arthritis is the nation’s No. 1 cause of disability.
  • Working-age men and women (ages 18 to 64) with arthritis are less likely to be employed than those of the same age without arthritis.
  • 1/3 of working-age people with arthritis have limitations in their ability to work, the type of work they can do or whether they can work part time or full time.
  • People with osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis –two major kinds of arthritis – miss a combined 172 million workdays every year.
  • Arthritis and related conditions account for more than $156 billion annually in lost wages and medical expenses.
  • There are nearly 1 million hospitalizations each year due to arthritis.
57%

of adults with heart disease have arthritis.

52%

of adults with diabetes have arthritis.

44%

of adults with high blood pressure have arthritis.

36%

of adults who are obese have arthritis.

33%

of adults with arthritis age 45 and older have either anxiety or depression.

Below are stories from our sales team and patients who use our products.

Recently, I had a great experience in helping a patient with an OA brace. The patient is a 90- year old lady who has pretty severe lateral compartment OA but is still pretty active (enjoys gardening, going for walks, and just normal everyday activities). However, she didn't want to go the surgical route due to her age and didn't really want to try injections because she was on blood thinners. So her physician suggested she let me try a couple of unloader braces on her to see if they helped, and the patient was open to trying them out.

She walked into the room with a limp, and her daughter, who was with her at the appointment, said because her knee was hurting so much she wasn't standing up straight anymore and it was affecting her posture and mobility. Due to the ease of application, I brought in the OA Reaction® and the OA ClimaFlex™ for the patient to try out. The patient said she has very sensitive skin and was a little hesitant at first, but let me know she wanted something with more cushioning. After trying both she decided she liked the ClimaFlex better.

I had her test the brace by walking up and down the hall, going from a sitting to standing position, to get an idea of how it felt when she was moving. She was amazed at how much better her knee felt with the brace on. She wasn't limping quite as much and her daughter noticed that her Mom's posture had greatly improved just after having the brace on for a few minutes.

I had the patient practice taking the brace on and off, because she lives alone and would usually be the one putting the brace on. She was surprised at how easy it actually was to get on and off, and was happy that it fit underneath her pants. She didn't want anyone to know she had a brace on. It felt great helping this patient be able to continue doing the things she enjoys doing. DonJoy® OA braces can really make a difference for patients of all ages and this lady was definitely a wonderful example of that.

Katie Zsolcsak,
DJO® FSR at the Avon REJ Cleveland Clinic.

I am a 64-year old resident of Northeast Ohio and have enjoyed 45-plus years of recreation including tennis, softball, golf, biking and hiking. Over the years, various sports injuries have taken their toll on my joints; I have scaled back to primarily golf, yoga, cardio workouts and hiking, but the osteoarthritis I was diagnosed with has limited the scope of even these activities. It had gotten to the point where working out was more “work” than fun. Since being fitted for my DJO® knee braces, I have been able to enjoy a better quality of life and renewed interest in the outdoors. Over the past year, I have enjoyed my golf games, and I’ve been able to hike Zion and Bryce National Parks (with Yellowstone and Glacier on our agenda for 2019). Thanks to DJO, I am looking forward to many years of adventures.

Rich Wanders
Aurora, OH

I’ve represented DonJoy® since 1984 and been on the advisory board for the Arthritis Foundation® since the early 1990s. That combination has led me to have a high level of interest in how DonJoy knee braces can help people suffering with Knee OA maintain and actually increase their activity levels.

Throughout the years, I have had many interactions with patients who want to get back to activities they love at home (golf, mowing the lawn, hiking, etc.) or achieve a significant event, like walking up the steps of museums while on a vacation in Europe, climbing a volcano in Hawaii or a Glacier in Montana. Time and time again, patients have been amazed by how much pain relief can be achieved by simply shifting the pressure inside the knee with a brace to allow them to do what they previously could not do.

I have many photos like the one attached from happy patients as a thank you for helping them achieve their goals. Pictures like these make it very rewarding to do what I do, which sometimes is restore hope to do what they love!

Glade Pauley
MA, AT(r), Infinity Orthopedics

http://blog.arthritis.org/news/arthritis-awareness-month

Each patient testimonial relates an account of an individual’s response to treatment. The accounts are genuine, typical and documented. However, these responses do not provide any indication, guide, warranty or guarantee as to the response other people may have to the treatment. The response other individuals have to the treatment could be different. Responses to the treatment can and do vary. Not every response is the same.