GLA:D is built around the scientific recommendations for knee and hip osteoarthritis - what was previously called worn out joints. The course includes both patient education and a training course under the guidance of a GLA:D-Certified physiotherapist.

Who benefits from a GLA:D course?
GLA:D for knee and hip pain is originally development for osteoarthritis-related pain. However, we see many without the diagnosis of osteoarthritis, which also has a good effect of a GLA:D course. These are therefore typically people over the age of 40 with osteoarthritis-related pain, or pain without a specific cause.
 

GLA:D-Back is an offer for patients who have long-term or recurrent low back pain that affects their quality of life and everyday life. It is also an offer for patients with low back pain who have difficulty dealing with the pain and the consequences it has.

Patients with more acute back pain, nerve root pressure, an active rheumatic disease or other disease that causes back pain are not the target group for GLA:D-Back.

The physiotherapist assesses whether GLA:D-Back is a possible offer for the patient. Participation in a GLA:D-Back course is based on a joint decision by the physiotherapist and the patient.

From worn out joints to osteoarthritis
One has today gone away from using the term  worn out joints  and has instead switched to using the technical term osteoarthritis. The reason is that osteoarthritis is not related to wear and tear. This means that osteoarthritis does not develop as a consequence of having used your joint too much - if that were the case, then it would not make sense to train/load the joint further. 

We know today that the amount of osteoarthritis on an X-ray does not say anything about the real condition of the joint. On an X-ray, you can have a lot of osteoarthritis and no pain and a little osteoarthritis with a lot of pain. 

It seems that the factors that come into play are physical inactivity, obesity, previous injuries, other rheumatic diseases and heredity. In addition, osteoarthritis is a condition that occurs more frequently with increasing age. Some occupations also appear to be at increased risk of developing osteoarthritis.

 

 

 

 

 

What is GLA:D training?
GLA:D is a concept with a foundation in science. This means that GLA:D is based on the best knowledge we have available regarding the treatment of osteoarthritis-related pain. In practice, this means that you as a patient must go through the following:

• Thorough preliminary examination by a competent physiotherapist.

• Teaching osteoarthritis related to your pain.

• Minimum 6 weeks training course of 2 training sessions per week.

The training consists of various exercises, which over time become more difficult to suit the patient's increasing level. It is also important to emphasize that the training is adapted individually so that the exercises suit the level the patient is at. Each training session will last approx. 60 minutes.

If you experience worsening of your symptoms at the start of a GLA:D course, do not despair. It is quite normal for the sore joints and the surrounding muscles to "complain" about the new working conditions, and the tissue must spend time adapting to the training. Your GLA:D physiotherapist will familiarize you with the pain rules you need to know and will correct your training accordingly.

When the training process is over, it is recommended that the patient continues the training at home - or on one of the clinic's other teams.

What do the participants say after completing the GLA:D course?
​ The developers of GLA:D continuously examine the efficacy and satisfaction of the patients undergoing a GLA:D course. To date, there are 37,270 patients who have completed a GLA:D course. Participants participate in a satisfaction survey 3 months after completing the GLA:D course. Of these, 88.4% assess that the GLA:D course has been "Good" or "Very good". There is therefore great satisfaction with the GLA:D courses.

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Are you interested in a GLA:D course? Or maybe you know someone who could benefit from it? Then we would very much like to help. Call Hørsholm Physiotherapy & Back Center on 45 86 94 00  or write to post@horsholmfys.dk . You can also book directly through our online booking .