Efficacy of exercise rehabilitation in patients with knee osteoarthritis

Abstract

Objective: To explore whether exercise could influence outcomes and improve life quality of patients with knee osteoarthritis. Methods: This study included 210 patients diagnosed with knee osteoarthritis from October to December 2018 in Shijiazhuang Derui Exercise Rehabilitation Medical Center. These patients were divided into two groups with random number table: experiment and control group. Patients in experimental group got exercise rehabilitation training and routine therapy,but patients in control group got routine treatment only that included physical therapy and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). We applied different kinds of measure to follow-up these patients,which included Lysholm scale, the Western Ontario and McMaster Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), SF-36 life quality questionnaire, and knee range of motion.The degree of pain and symptoms and the knee function and the quality of life in the two groups were recorded too. Paired sample t test was used to compare the data between the two groups. Results: There were 105 patients in each group, but 13 cases (12.4%) in experimental group and 6 patients (5.7%) in control group were lost,respectively.All the patients were followed up for (12.0±2.3) weeks. There was no significant differences in age, body mass index, gender between the two groups. At the final follow-up, the WOMAC score in the experiment group was 84.4±6.8, and it was 108.3±1.7 in the control group (t=-4.71, P<0.05);the Lysholm score of the experimental group was 65.5±4.7, and it was 41.2±1.4 in the control group (t=7.29, P<0.05); the knee range of motion in the experiment group and control group was 121°±7° and 114°±3°, respectively (t=1.83, P<0.05); the SF-36 score in the two groups was 90.0±2.8 and 75.6±1.5, respectively (t=6.15, P<0.05). Conclusion: Exercise rehabilitation plus routine therapy for patients with knee osteoarthritis can effectively improve outcome, promote functional recovery and improve quality of life.