Is Adding Education to Trunk and Hip Exercises Beneficial for Patellofemoral Pain? A Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

ObjectiveTo investigate the effect of adding education to trunk and hip exercises in patients with patellofemoral pain (PFP). DesignA randomized controlled trial. SettingResearch laboratory. ParticipantsSixty patients with PFP (N=60) were randomly assigned to either an experimental group (education followed by trunk and hip exercises, n=30) or a control group (trunk and hip exercises, n=30). InterventionsBoth groups received 8 weeks of trunk and hip exercises, while patients in the experimental group participated in 3 prior education sessions. Main Outcome MeasuresThe primary outcome was pain; secondary outcomes were pain catastrophizing, kinesiophobia, function, and muscle strength. Outcomes were assessed at baseline, after 8 weeks (post-intervention), and 3 months post-intervention (follow-up). ResultsNo significant between-group differences were observed for pain outcome post-intervention. The experimental group showed superiority over the control group in the improvement of pain catastrophizing (mean difference: -2.32; 95% confidence interval [CI] -1.059 to 0.028) and kinesiophobia (mean difference: -3.56; 95% CI -1.067 to -0.035) at post-intervention. In the experimental group, improvements were maintained at follow-up assessment for all outcomes, except muscle strength. ConclusionAdding education to trunk and hip exercises was associated with greater improvements in psychological outcomes than trunk and hip exercises alone after the intervention. Education can be incorporated when designing trunk and hip exercises for patients with PFP.