Effect of isometric exercise on knee pain perception among old people with osteoarthritis

Knee osteoarthritis (OA) has been identified as among the top three causes of chronic pain and functional limitations in aging populations. The first line of treatment for OA is exercise as part of a conservative management plan. Therefore, it is of interest to determine if isometric exercise would reduce pain perception of the knee in elderly patients (age 60-75) with knee OA. The sample consisted of 40 participants matched to experimental or control groups using consecutive sampling. Pain was measured before and after the intervention using a standardized pain scale. After the intervention, the mean pain score for the experimental group decreased from 4.70 to 0.37, for an overall mean difference of 4.32 (p < 0.05). Thus, we report that isometric exercise of the knee for the treatment of knee OA significantly reduces pain perception in older adults with knee OA.