High- Versus Low-Dose Exercise Therapy for Knee Osteoarthritis : A Randomized Controlled Multicenter Trial

Area of Science:

• Orthopedics
• Physical Therapy
• Rehabilitation Medicine

Background:

• Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is a prevalent condition causing pain and functional decline.
• Exercise is beneficial for knee OA, but optimal dosage is not established.
• This study investigated high-dose versus low-dose exercise for knee OA management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the effectiveness of high-dose versus low-dose exercise therapy.
• To evaluate impacts on knee function, pain, and quality of life (QoL) in knee OA patients.
• To determine optimal exercise prescription for long-term symptomatic knee OA.

Main Methods:

• A multicenter randomized controlled superiority trial involving 189 knee OA patients.
• Intervention groups received either high-dose (11 exercises, 70-90 min) or low-dose (5 exercises, 20-30 min) exercise therapy.
• Exercise was performed 3 times/week for 12 weeks, with follow-ups to 12 months.

Main Results:

• Both high-dose and low-dose exercise groups improved over time.
• No significant benefits of high-dose therapy were observed for most outcomes.
• High-dose therapy showed superiority in knee function for sports/recreation and a small QoL benefit at 6 and 12 months.

Conclusions:

• High-dose exercise therapy is not superior to low-dose therapy for most knee OA outcomes.
• Small benefits in sports function and quality of life may favor high-dose exercise.
• Further research is needed to refine exercise prescriptions for knee OA.