Clinicians' beliefs and attitudes to physical activity and exercise therapy as treatment for knee and/or hip osteoarthritis: a scoping review.

OBJECTIVE: To explore clinicians' attitudes and beliefs about physical activity and exercise therapy as treatment for individuals with knee and/or hip osteoarthritis (OA). METHOD: This was a scoping review, mapping available knowledge about the topic derived from qualitative research designs and methods. A comprehensive search of selected databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE; CINAHL; Web of Science) was conducted and data were analysed thematically. RESULTS: Twelve articles met inclusion criteria. Thematic analysis identified three interrelated main themes: 1) Understandings of OA and its trajectory and management; 2) Attitudes to activity and exercise as part of OA management; 3) Clinicians' perceived knowledge of and expertise in OA management. Findings highlight that many clinicians involved in knee/hip OA management, particularly general practitioners and physiotherapists, perceive OA to be a low priority 'wear-and-tear' disease with expected progression of symptoms, making joint replacement surgery eventually inevitable. Further, many clinicians appear to lack knowledge about and interest in physical activity and exercise therapy in the management of knee/hip OA, and seem to show uncertainty about the effectiveness and safety of physical activity and exercise therapy on joint health. CONCLUSION: Clinicians' attitudes and beliefs about physical activity and exercise therapy in OA seem to reflect an outdated narrative which describes OA as a wear-and-tear disease with inevitable disease progression to joint replacement surgery. Clinicians need to adopt a contemporary narrative, which accurately reflects current knowledge and evidence-based practice, thereby ensuring consistent utilisation of exercise therapy as first-line care as recommended in OA guidelines.

The clinical profile of people with knee osteoarthritis and a self-reported prior knee injury: A cross-sectional study of 10,973 people.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about how a prior knee injury affects the clinical profile of individuals with knee osteoarthritis (KOA) although this is potentially important to personalize care. OBJECTIVES: To compare individual and clinical characteristics of individuals with KOA with and without a self-reported prior knee injury. DESIGN: Secondary data analysis of baseline data from the Good Life with osteoArthritis in Denmark (GLA:D®) registry. METHODS: Individuals with symptomatic KOA, self-reporting a prior knee injury requiring a doctor's assessment, were compared to individuals without prior knee injury on a range of individual and clinical characteristics using multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS: The analysis included 10,973 individuals with KOA of which 54% self-reported a prior knee injury. The average age was 64 years and 73% were female. We found that being male (Odds Ratio (OR): 0.99), having longer symptom duration of knee pain (OR: 1.07), having more painful body sites (OR: 1.03), being able to do more chair rises (OR: 1.02) and being more physically active in a week (2-4 days; OR:1.33) (>4 days; OR: 1.24) were associated with self-reporting a prior knee injury whereas being older (OR: 0.99), having higher BMI (OR: 0.99) and higher quality of life (OR: 0.98) were not associated with reporting a prior knee injury. CONCLUSION: The overall pattern of our findings rather than specific characteristics indicates that individuals with KOA and a history of a self-reported knee injury have a somewhat different clinical profile than their non-injured peers.

Low-dose strength training in addition to neuromuscular exercise and education in patients with knee osteoarthritis in secondary care - a randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effects of lower limb strength training in addition to neuromuscular exercise and education (ST + NEMEX-EDU) compared to neuromuscular exercise and education alone (NEMEX-EDU) on self-reported physical function in patients with knee osteoarthritis (KOA). DESIGN: Patient-blinded, parallel-group randomized controlled trial (RCT). METHODS: The trial included 90 patients in secondary care with radiographic and symptomatic KOA, ineligible for knee replacement. Both groups exercised twice weekly for 12 weeks. Additional strength training consisted of a single, fatiguing knee extension set (30-60RM) before four sets of leg-press (8-12RM). Primary outcome was the between-group difference on the subscale activities of daily living from the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOSADL) at 12 weeks. Secondary outcomes included KOOS symptoms, pain, function in sport and recreation, and quality of life, 40 m walk, stair climb, leg extension power, EuroQol-5D-5L, pain medication usage, and adverse events. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant between-group difference in KOOSADL at 12-weeks; adjusted mean difference -1.15 (-6.78 to 4.48). Except for the stair climb test, which demonstrated an adjusted mean difference of 1.15 (0.09-2.21) in favor of ST + NEMEX-EDU, all other outcomes showed no statistically significant between-group differences. Neither group improved leg extension power. CONCLUSION: The addition of lower-limb strength training, using a low-dose approach, to neuromuscular exercise and education carried no additional benefits on self-reported physical function or on most secondary outcomes. Both groups displayed similar improvements at 12-week follow-up. Hence, the current low-dose strength training approach provided no additional clinical value in this group of KOA patients. Trial identifier (ClinicalTrials.gov): NCT03215602.

Football training improves cardiovascular health profile in sedentary, premenopausal hypertensive women.

The present study examined the effects of short-term recreational football training on blood pressure (BP), fat mass, and fitness in sedentary, 35-50-year-old premenopausal women with mild hypertension. Forty-one untrained, hypertensive women were randomized into a football training group (n = 21; FTG) and a control group (n = 20; CON). FTG performed 45 ± 1 1-h small-sided football training sessions during the 15-week intervention period. BP, body composition (dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry), blood lipid profile, and fitness level were determined pre- and post-intervention. After 15 weeks, systolic and diastolic BP, respectively, were lowered more (P < 0.05) in FTG (-12 ± 3 and -6 ± 2 mmHg) than in CON (-1 ± 1 and 1 ± 2 mmHg). Total body fat mass decreased more (P < 0.05) in FTG than in CON during the 15-week intervention period (-2.3 ± 0.5 kg vs 0.4 ± 0.3 kg). After 15 weeks, both total cholesterol (-0.4 ± 0.1 mmol/L vs 0.1 ± 0.2 mmol/L) and triglyceride (-0.2 ± 0.1 mmol/L vs 0.3 ± 0.2 mmol/L) were lowered more (P < 0.05) in FTG than in CON. Yo-Yo intermittent endurance level 1 test performance increased more (P < 0.05) in FTG than in CON (111 ± 18% vs 1 ± 3%) during the 15-week intervention period. In conclusion, short-term football training resulted in a marked reduction in BP and induced multiple improvements in fitness and cardiovascular health profile of untrained, premenopausal women with mild hypertension.