By Kenny Merlevede

Senior Physiotherapist, Founder and Director · Registered with the AHPRA (PHY0002060505)

Sports Rehabilitation · Musculoskeletal Problems · Sport Injuries · Neck pain, headaches, dizziness, jaw related neck pain

Kenny is a physiotherapist with over 18 years’ experience in musculoskeletal and sports rehabilitation. He has a focus on identifying the contributing factors behind pain and treating complex presentations including chronic spine pain, neck and headache disorders, jaw dysfunction, and persistent sports injuries. His approach combines manual therapy, dry needling, and active rehabilitation with strong emphasis on education and patient outcomes. He is also a GEMt dry needling teacher and demonstrator. As an endurance athlete with experience in marathons, Ironman, CrossFit, basketball, and ultra endurance events, he brings a performance athlete's perspective to rehabilitation and load management.

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How can physiotherapy help with osteoarthritis?

Osteoarthritis is a chronic condition that affects the moving joints in the body, such as the cartilage, the subchondral bone and the surrounding soft tissues. It mostly affects the weight bearing joints, e.g.: spine, knees, hips or ankles.

Osteoarthritis is not always degenerative and it doesn’t always get worse over time.

Rest, which was often prescribed in the past, is most likely not what you need as the reduction of muscle mass around the joint and associated decrease in range of motion can contribute to your problem.

According to the latest research and the Australian physiotherapy association website, exercise and physical activity play an important role in managing osteoarthritis and surgery should not be the first treatment choice for patients with osteoarthritis and should only be considered after high value non-surgical care, including exercise therapy, education and weight management.

Physiotherapy for the treatment of osteoarthritis varies from patient to patient. Manual therapy to increase the joint range of motion and reduce pain can, in many cases, be beneficial.

Can dry needling help with arthritis?

Usually, we use Dry Needling to have an effect on the muscle tone, which indirectly can have an effect on the pressure on a joint and therefore can help with osteoarthritis. On the other hand, there's also some evidence that dry needling may trigger physiological responses such as increased beta-endorphin levels, which are associated with pain relief, potentially helping reduce reliance on pain medication. Some research suggests it may also influence how the brain processes pain, though this is an area of ongoing study.