Determination of the Effectiveness of Certain Physical Methods in the Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic joint disease that involves the entire joint, causing cartilage damage, bone remodeling, osteophyte formation and loss of normal joint function. Knee OA is one of the leading causes of disability in the world and thus represents a major public health problem. Knee OA treatment can be operative and non-operative. Non-operative treatment includes pharmacological treatment, changing life style and physical therapy. The goal of physical therapy in knee OA is to reduce pain and improve knee function through therapeutic exercise, especially by strengthening the quadriceps muscle. In addition to therapeutic exercise, muscle electrical stimulation is often used, and in the literature there is evidence of biofeedback therapy efficacy. Goal of the study is to investigate whether there is a difference in pain reduction, increase in quadriceps muscle strength, and improvement in knee function in patients who had only kinesitherapy, from those who underwent kinesitherapy and biofeedback, and in patients who received electrical stimulation of quadriceps muscle with kinesitherapy. 93 patients with knee OA according to ACR criteria and Kellgren and Lawrence radiological classification grades 1 and 2 will be included in study. Subjects will complete: Visually Analogous Pain Scale (VAS), Western Ontario Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), 36 Item Short Form Health Survey (SF 36), International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) osteoarthritis core set, and quadriceps muscle strength will be measured by EMG biofeedback device.