Several individual RCTs demonstrated clinical ly important improvements in pain and disability with aerobic exercise .
Other PT interventions demonstrated no sustained benefit .
Individual RCTs showed similar benefits with aerobic , aquatic , and strengthening exercise .
Adverse events were uncommon and did not deter participants from continuing treatment .
Low-strength evidence suggested that only a few PT interventions were effective .
BACKGROUND Osteoarthritis is a leading cause of disability .
Nonsurgical treatment is a key first step .
PURPOSE Systematic literature review of physical therapy ( PT ) interventions for community-dwelling adults with knee osteoarthritis .
Effects of muscle-strength training on the functional status of patients with osteoarthritis of the knee joint.
This study was design ed to determine whether an 8-week isokinetic muscle-strength-training program improved the functional health status of patients with osteoarthritis of the knee joint . Twenty volunteers with osteoarthritis of the knee joint were r and omly assigned to either an experimental ( n=10 ) or control ( n=10 ) group . The experimental group completed six sets of five maximal contractions three times per week for 8 weeks on a Cybex II dynamometer at 90 degrees per second . Both groups were pre- and posttest for extension and flexion strength of the right and left legs , the 50-foot walk time , range of motion at the knee joint , the Osteoarthritis Screening Index ( OASI ) , and the Arthritis Impact Measurement Scale ( AIMS ) . There was a significant decrease in pain and stiffness , and a significant increase in mobility . There was also a significant decline in arthritis activity in the experimental group as measured by the OASI and AIMS . The experimental group significantly increased in all strength measures , while the control group increased in only right leg flexion and left leg extension across the training period
Several individual RCTs demonstrated clinical ly important improvements in pain and disability with aerobic exercise .
Other PT interventions demonstrated no sustained benefit .
Individual RCTs showed similar benefits with aerobic , aquatic , and strengthening exercise .
Adverse events were uncommon and did not deter participants from continuing treatment .
Low-strength evidence suggested that only a few PT interventions were effective .
BACKGROUND Osteoarthritis is a leading cause of disability .
Nonsurgical treatment is a key first step .
PURPOSE Systematic literature review of physical therapy ( PT ) interventions for community-dwelling adults with knee osteoarthritis .