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 .
A treatment applying a biomechanical device to the feet of patients with knee osteoarthritis results in reduced pain and improved function: a prospective controlled study
Background This study examined the effect of treatment with a novel biomechanical device on the level of pain and function in patients with knee OA . Methods Patients with bilateral knee OA were enrolled to active and control groups . Patients were evaluated at baseline , at 4 weeks and at the 8-week endpoint . A novel biomechanical device was individually calibrated to patients from the active group . Patients from the control group received an identical foot-worn platform without the biomechanical elements . Primary outcomes were the WOMAC Index and ALF assessment s. Results There were no baseline differences between the groups . At 8 weeks , the active group showed a mean improvement of 64.8 % on the WOMAC pain scale , a mean improvement of 62.7 % on the WOMAC function scale , and a mean improvement of 31.4 % on the ALF scale . The control group demonstrated no improvement in the above parameters . Significant differences were found between the active and control groups in all the parameters of assessment . Conclusions The biomechanical device and treatment methodology is effective in significantly reducing pain and improving function in knee OA patients .The study is registered at clinical trials.gov , identifier NCT00457132 , http://www . clinical
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 .