EFFECT OF NEUROMUSCULAR EXERCISES AND QUADRICEPS STRENGTHENING EXERCISES ON PAIN AND FUNCTION IN PATIENTS WITH KNEE OSTEOARTHRITIS

C. Vimal¹, M.A. Manoharlal¹, M. Sri Shankar¹

¹KG College of Physiotherapy, Department of Orthopaedics, Coimbatore, India

Background: Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease. There are around 654.1 million individuals (40 years and over) affected with knee osteoarthritis in 2020 worldwide. Osteoarthritis changes the normal structure of the cartilage, that causes both pain and loss of physical function, resulting in reduced quality of life. Exercise is an efficient treatment to reduce knee pain and improve function and quality of life in patients with knee osteoarthritis. It helps to prevent and reduce the progression of the structural damage of the articular cartilage.So that will reduces the patient difficulties in their activities of daily living.

Purpose: To find out and compare the effect of Neuromuscular exercise and Quadriceps strengthening exercise on pain and function in patients with knee osteoarthritis.

Methods: A pre test and post test experimental study design with a total of 30 patients were divided into two groups. Group A received quadriceps strengthening exercises and Group B received neuromuscular exercises for 8 weeks duration, 3 session per week. Pain was measured using the visual analogue scale (VAS) and Function was measured by using the western ontario mcmster universities osteoarthritis index (WOMAC).

Results: Paired and Unpaired t test were used for the statistical analysis. The pain had post test value of 4.8 in Group A and 2.2 in Group B. The physical function with post test value of 46.07 in Group A and 28.0 in Group B. Group B showed significant changes (p<0.05) among the variables when compared with the Group A.

Conclusions: Both neuromuscular and quadricpes strengthening exercises showed improvement in patients. But Neuromuscular exercise showed significant improvement than the Quadriceps strengthening exercise on pain and physical function in patients with knee osteoarthritis. Thus, this study concluded that Neuromuscular exercises is more effective than Quadriceps strengthening exercise given to group A.

Implications: Thus, this study suggests that neuromuscular exrcise is an effective physiotherapy treatment for knee osteoarthritis, which helps to reduce pain and improves physical function in patients with knee osteoarthritis. That will help to improve the quality of life of the patient. So, neuromuscular exercise can be include as an effective treatment method in the field of physiotherapy.

Funding acknowledgements: THIS STUDY WAS UNFUNDED

Keywords:
KNEE OSTEOARTHRITIS
NEUROMUSCULAR EXERCISES
QUADRICEPS STRENGTHENING EXERCISES

Topics:
Musculoskeletal: lower limb

Did this work require ethics approval? Yes

Institution: KG College of Physiotherapy (Affiliated to Dr.Mgr Medical University Tamilnadu-India)

Committee: Ethical Committee of KG Hospital

Ethics number: KGHEC588