Patient and Clinician Preferences for Postrehabilitation Physical Activity Support in Knee, Hip, and Low Back Pain...

OBJECTIVE: To investigate knee/hip osteoarthritis (OA) and low back pain (LBP) patient preferences for strategies to maintain physical activity after in-person rehabilitation, and the strategies recommended by clinicians. DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey study. METHODS: We recruited patients with knee/hip OA and LBP at 2 Good Life with osteoArthritis in Denmark (GLA:D) facilities and invited clinicians delivering physical rehabilitation for these diagnoses via emails and social media. The survey was conducted between April and June 2025. Questionnaires for patients and clinicians both contained 11 strategies for maintaining patients' physical activity levels informed by findings from a systematic review. Participants could rate their preferences on a 9-point Likert scale from "Disagree" to "Agree" and provide additional comments. We summarized the data using descriptive statistics. RESULTS: Twenty-five patients and 52 clinicians completed the questionnaires. The patients' mean age was 75.5 years; 88% were women. Ninety-two percent preferred exercise therapy alone and 76% preferred in-person interventions for physical activity maintenance. The clinicians had varying experience working with patients with OA and LBP and had a mean age of 44.5 years; 60% were women, and 64% of them recommended combining exercise and self-management interventions for physical activity maintenance. Additional comments from both groups highlighted preferences for focusing on social environment (ie, group exercising), individual preferences, and motivations. CONCLUSION: After in-person rehabilitation, patients more frequently preferred in-person exercise therapy, while clinicians more frequently preferred recommending exercise therapy with self-management support. These findings should be interpreted with caution given the small sample size. JOSPT Open 2026;4(3):313-320. Epub 15 May 2026. doi:10.2519/josptopen.2026.0216.