Performance of quality of life and functional capacity in women with knee osteoarthritis treated with viscosupplementation and strength training

The viscosupplementation and strength training are interventions accepted in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis. Objective: The study describes the effect of two interventions in quality of life and functional capacity. Method: Thirty women diagnosed with bilateral knee osteoarthritis of grade II and III by radiological criteria of Kellgren & Lawrence, were randomized into three groups with ten patients each: VSTF group submitted to viscosupplementation and strength training, TF group submitted only to strength training and VS group submitted only to viscossuplementation. Moments of the study were defined as pre-procedure (PRE), after 48 hours of VS (POS-VS) after 12 weeks of training (POS T) and after eight weeks of detraining (POS D). Quality of life was assessed by the SF-36 BRAZIL, functional capacity by Lequesne index. Intraarticular infiltrations were carried out with a single dose of 6 ml / 48 mg with 6,000,000 kDa Hylan GF-20 and strength training sessions were held for twelve weeks. Results: Strength training and viscosupplementation were effective in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis. Both interventions promoted improvements in quality of life and in functional capacity (p < 0.001), with advantage to the groups that trained force. Conclusion: Strength training is a possible replacement of viscosupplementation in the treatment of osteoarthritis of women's knees. However, the beneficial effect of viscosupplementation in pain reduction suggests better efficiency in the strength training execution which may be an advantage of the association of both

Comparative analysis of quadriceps and hamstrings strength in knee osteoarthritis before and after total knee arthroplasty: a cross-sectional study

ABSTRACT Objective: Compare the maximal isokinetic muscle strength of knee extensor and flexor muscles between patients with knee osteoarthritis and patients submitted to total knee arthroplasty. Methods: Volunteers were divided into five groups (n = 20): Control; Ahlbäck I and II; Ahlbäck IV; six months after total knee arthroplasty; 12 months after total knee arthroplasty. An isokinetic knee strength evaluation was conducted for the quadriceps and hamstrings at 60°/s. Results: Significant differences in the peak torque of the quadriceps and hamstrings were found among the groups (p < 0.001). The Ahlbäck IV, six-month, and 12-month postoperative groups demonstrated lower values when compared to the Control and Ahlbäck I and II groups. When percentage values were compared to the Control group, mean differences ranged from 7% to 41%. Conclusion: Patients with healthy knees or early stage osteoarthritis have higher quadriceps and hamstrings strengths than those with a more advanced stage of the disease, even after knee replacement. These findings suggest that the traditional rehabilitation programs do not recover strength to levels observed in individuals without knee osteoarthritis