3 ) short-term , water-based aerobic capacity training , which results show limited evidence for a positive effect on functional ability and aerobic capacity .
( 4 ) long-term , l and -based aerobic capacity and muscle strength training , which results show moderate evidence for a positive effect on aerobic capacity and muscle strength .
With respect to safety , no deleterious effects were found in any of the included studies .
Based on the evidence , aerobic capacity training combined with muscle strength training is recommended as routine practice in patients with RA
BACKGROUND An up-to- date overview of the effectiveness and safety of dynamic exercise therapy ( exercise therapy with a sufficient intensity , duration , and frequency to establish improvement in aerobic capacity and /or muscle strength ) is lacking .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effectiveness and safety of short-term ( < three months ) and long-term ( > three months ) dynamic exercise therapy programs ( aerobic capacity and /or muscle strength training ) , either l and or water-based , for people with RA .
To do this we up date d a previous Cochrane review ( van den Ende 1998 ) and made categories for the different forms of dynamic exercise programs .
Dynamic strength training in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis increases muscle strength but not bone mineral density.
OBJECTIVE To assess the effects of 12 months ' dynamic strength training on muscle strength and bone mineral density ( BMD ) at the lumbar spine and femoral neck in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis ( RA ) . METHODS Thirty-two subjects in the training group ( EG ) and 33 in the control group ( CG ) completed the study . EG carried out strength training 2 times a week with moderate loads of 50 - 70 % of repetition maximum . They were also encouraged to do recreational physical activities . CG performed recreational physical activities and range of motion exercises .  Maximal strength of the knee extensors , trunk extensors and flexors , and grip strength were recorded with dynamometers . BMD was measured using dual x-ray absorptiometry . Modified Disease Activity Score , erythrocyte sedimentation rate , and pain were used for the estimation of disease activity , and Stanford Health Assessment Question naire to measure functional disability . RESULTS The 12 month resistance training in EG led to statistically significant mean increases of 22 - 35 % in all muscle groups examined . CG patients were also able to increase their strength to some degree ( 3 - 24 % ) , but at the end of the study strengths in CG were significantly lower than in EG . By the end of the study lumbar spine BMD had changed by + 0.19 % ( 4.24 ) in EG and by -1.14 % ( 4.36 ) in CG . The corresponding changes of femoral BMD were + 1.10 % ( 3.71 ) and -0.03 % ( 3.58 ) . The changes in BMD were minor and statistically not significant in both groups . However , femoral BMD was found to be decreased among those patients treated periodically with oral glucocorticoids ( n = 15 , 3 subjects from EG and 12 from CG ) compared with changes in BMD among those not treated with systemic glucocorticoids ( n = 50 ) . CONCLUSION Minimally supervised strength training result ed in significant improvements in muscle strength without detrimental effects on disease activity . The detected annual changes in central BMD were minor and statistically insignificant in both groups . Special attention should be focused on those patients with RA with high disease activity and concomitant glucocorticoid treatment
3 ) short-term , water-based aerobic capacity training , which results show limited evidence for a positive effect on functional ability and aerobic capacity .
( 4 ) long-term , l and -based aerobic capacity and muscle strength training , which results show moderate evidence for a positive effect on aerobic capacity and muscle strength .
With respect to safety , no deleterious effects were found in any of the included studies .
Based on the evidence , aerobic capacity training combined with muscle strength training is recommended as routine practice in patients with RA
BACKGROUND An up-to- date overview of the effectiveness and safety of dynamic exercise therapy ( exercise therapy with a sufficient intensity , duration , and frequency to establish improvement in aerobic capacity and /or muscle strength ) is lacking .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effectiveness and safety of short-term ( < three months ) and long-term ( > three months ) dynamic exercise therapy programs ( aerobic capacity and /or muscle strength training ) , either l and or water-based , for people with RA .
To do this we up date d a previous Cochrane review ( van den Ende 1998 ) and made categories for the different forms of dynamic exercise programs .