Evaluating home-based personalised virtual reality physiotherapy rehabilitation compared with usual care in the treatment of pain for people with knee osteoarthritis: protocol for a randomised feasibility study

Abstract

Introduction Home-based physiotherapy is a current approach to manage knee osteoarthritis (OA). However, adherence to physiotherapy is poor. Non-immersive virtual reality (VR) has shown promise in improving self-efficacy and adherence in other clinical conditions. A non-immersive VR-based home physiotherapy system named Sensor-based Physiotherapy Intervention with Virtual Reality (SPIN-VR) for knee OA has been developed, integrating physiotherapy exercises into engaging games that adjust in difficulty based on real-time performance. This approach aims to enhance exercise adherence by making physiotherapy more enjoyable and personalised. To evaluate the feasibility of this intervention, a randomised controlled trial is being conducted. Method and analysis This single-centre, open-label, randomised controlled feasibility trial will evaluate the SPIN-VR system over 12 weeks compared with usual care physiotherapy for knee OA. 50 participants will be randomly assigned to either the SPIN-VR or usual care group, with follow-ups at 12 and 24 weeks post randomisation. The primary outcomes will be a description of feasibility of recruitment, patient willingness to be randomised, the completeness of outcome measures and patient adherence to the intervention. Secondary outcomes include evaluations of muscle strength, endurance, aerobic capacity, exercise technique, central pain processing and self-reported pain mechanisms and moderators. Participants in the intervention arm will be interviewed after 12 weeks to capture their experience in using the VR system. Ethics and dissemination This protocol was approved by the Wales Research Ethics Committee 3. Research findings will be disseminated in open-access peer-reviewed journals, to researchers and health professionals through conference presentations, to patients and the public by organising webinars and a seminar. Trial registration number NCT06639867