HKSKH Welfare Council uses app to bring relief to the elderly suffering from arthritis

Publish Date: 03-Nov-2020

Over thirty per cent of Hong Kong people aged over sixty suffers from chronic knee pain. The most common ailment is degenerative arthritis, which could not be cured but the pain could be alleviated through medical and non-medical treatments.

HKSKH Welfare Council was sponsored by the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust to launch a three-year program, “Jockey Club E-Generation Chronic Knee Pain Management Project”, to help elderly people suffering from the ailment to take up exercises as a habit, enhance their knowledge in arthritis, and prevent their health from deteriorating because of the pain.

The Council held a presentation on the project on 12 October, which is designated as the “World Arthritis Day”, to announce the results of its E-Generation Project. The project combined exercises, an AI game, and treatments in a single app. Each participant received a tablet and used its camera function to record their stretching, balancing, and stiffness relieving workouts as well as exercises according to a menu devised by physiotherapists. Many elderly people avoided going out during the Covid-19 pandemic, but this app-enabled them to continue to work out at home to maximize the treatment effects.

By the end of March this year, 516 elderly people took part in the first phase of the project. Their average age was seventy-three and 80% of them were women. At the end of the first phase of the project, the participants learned more about arthritis and experienced physical improvements, such as better flexibility, stronger muscles and better endurance in their lower bodies, better agility, and better balance. The number of people who were diagnosed with a medium to high risk of falling over was reduced from 12.4% to 9.4%.