Background: Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the leading causes of pain and disability among adults worldwide. For many individuals with knee OA, accessing proper physiotherapy services is difficult, especially with the current COVID-19 pandemic.
Objective: The purpose of the current study is to investigate the feasibility and efficacy of a telephone-based physiotherapy (PT) care program for people with knee OA.
Methods: This was a pilot feasibility study, with a cross-over design and repeated measures. Two groups with knee OA were recruited, an immediate therapy group (IG) and a delayed therapy group (DG). The therapeutic program involved a telephone call from a physiotherapist to the participants 3/week for 8 weeks. Physiotherapist delivered to participants educational information on knee OA, followed-up on adhering to daily therapeutic exercises and coached participants regarding exercises while using a behavioral-change framework to ensure proper therapy. Following the 8-weeks program, the IG group were advised to continue exercises and the DG group were provided with the same telephone-based PT program.
Results: Forty participants were enrolled in the study (IG = 20; DG = 20). There were no significant differences between groups at baseline. The results of our study showed that the telephone-based PT program led to improvements across all outcome measures. Participants reported that they had less pain, less stiffness, and an overall improvement in physical function.
Conclusions: A telephone-based PT program appears to be feasible and effective in yielding significant benefits among individuals with knee OA.
Keywords: Physiotherapy practice; osteoarthritis; pain; physical function; tele-physiotherapy.