Osteopathic manipulative treatment improves function and relieves pain in knee osteoarthritis: A single-blind, randomized-controlled trial

Abstract

Objectives: In this study, we aimed to compare the efficacy of osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) to exercise treatment in the knee osteoarthritis (OA). Patients and methods: A total of 100 patients (9 males, 76 females; mean age 54.8±8.5 years; range, 40 to 70 years) with Stage II-III bilateral knee OA enrolled to the study and randomized into two groups between January 2015 and June 2015. Group 1 performed exercise and received OMT and Group 2 performed exercise alone. We assessed the clinical parameters with Western Ontario MacMaster Questionnaire (WOMAC) pain score, WOMAC joint stiffness score, WOMAC physical function score, Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and 50-m walking time. All patients were assessed at the beginning of the study, just after the treatment, and four weeks after the treatment. Results: There was no significant difference between groups in terms of physical examination and clinical assessment parameters before treatment. Functional improvement (p<0.05) and pain relief (p<0.05) were significantly higher in the exercise + OMT group. Conclusion: Based on our study results, OMT is a particular treatment used by osteopathic physicians to complement conventional treatment of OA of the knee. In addition to the conservative treatment, OMT can be used.

Dropout associated with osteopathic manual treatment for chronic noncancerous pain in randomized controlled trials

“…Our search from all databases collectively yielded 2,956 studies by title and abstract screening ( Figure 1) [22]. Of the 2,956 titles and abstracts, we included 16 studies in our initial review [22], but only 11 studies [34,35,[41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49] reported AE and dropout rates in patients (n=1,015). Descriptions of the study characteristics and reported dropouts are given in Table 1 and Table 2.…”

“…There was variety in the type of pain between the included studies: five included patients with low back pain [35,41,43,44,46], while one study was specific to those with sciatica related to lumbar disc herniation (LDH) [41]. Two studies included patients with fibromyalgia [34,45], one included patients with osteoarthritis [42], one with unspecified musculoskeletal pain [47], one study included patients with chronic shoulder pain [44], and one study with chronic neck pain [48]. The follow up duration ranged from 42 to 365 days.…”

The Benefits and Limitations of Evidence-based Practice in Osteopathy

“…We know that osteopathic treatment is effective in preterm children, with a reduction in the length of stay and without any adverse effects or clinical complications [12]. In patients with knee osteoarthritis, a randomized trial showed that osteopathy is able to reduce pain perceived, with a superior joint functional improvement, compared to the usual rehabilitation [13]. The use of osteopathy to reduce pain and improve the functional status of pregnant women (from the third month of pregnancy) works, without side effects of any kind [14].…”

Efficacy of Specified Manual Therapies in Combination with a Supervised Exercise Protocol for Managing Pain Intensity and Functional Disability in Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis

“…The American college of radiology (ACR) considers exercise therapy as the backbone of OA treatment and recommended its adoption in the management of knee OA based on its effectiveness in reducing pain and physical impairments, and improving the functional status and physical fitness of people with knee OA. 22–25 Previous studies reported that the high-velocity thrust technique and NSAIDs were equally effective in reducing knee pain. 23 However, spinal manual therapy and home exercise with advice were found to be more effective than medications in reducing neck pain in the short term and long term.…”

“…20 , 26 Therefore, structured exercise therapy and manual techniques could be considered as an adjunct or alternative to pharmaceutical management of OA. 14 , 22 , 27–29 …”