Newmarket Physio: Physical Therapy Better Than Surgery for Knee Pain

1. May 31, 2017 Newmarket Physio: Physical Therapy Better Than Surgery for Knee Pain Knee pain is a common condition that can be experienced by just about anyone. Every day you use your knees, the joints take a knocking. And the damage gets even worse when you have arthritis. Knee arthritis is the number one cause of disability and chronic pain among adults 65 and older. The damage caused by arthritis to the knee is often repaired surgically, but with so many people suffering from knee osteoarthritis, the best course of treatment isn’t always cut- and-dry. Page | 1

2. Surgery not cost-effective According to a study conducted Bart Ferket, MD, from the Icahan School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, and colleagues, surgery provides ‘minimal quality-of-life benefit for patients with less severe disability at baseline.’ "Improvements in quality of life with total knee replacement were on average smaller than previously shown," Ferket wrote in the study published online March 28 in the BMJ. "Given its limited effectiveness in individuals with less severely affected physical function, performance of total knee replacement in these patients seems to be economically unjustifiable." To conduct the study, Ferket and his colleagues obtained data from the database of the Osteoarthritis Initiative (OAI) and analysed 4498 individuals from the American population with or at risk for knee osteoarthritis. The age bracket for the study was 45 to 79 years. The knee condition if the patients was tracked for nine years, based on their follow-up evaluations. The researchers also validated their findings on 2907 knee osteoarthritis patients involved in the Multicenter Osteoarthritis Study (MOST), based on a 2-year follow-up. The researchers concluded that knee surgery as currently practiced in the United States, is not cost-effective for many patients. Physical therapy as surgery alternative A good number of research shows that physical therapy can be just as effective as surgery for knee osteoarthritis. One of the most prominent studies on the subject was conducted by researchers at the Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women’s Hospital and published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The result of the study supports Ferket’s idea that when it comes to knee pain, surgery is one of the least effective treatments available. Physical therapy for knee osteoarthritis When dealing with knee pain, a Newmarket physio therapist can help you work on your weak spots to help improve strength, balance, and joint alignment. Your physical therapist will also recommend exercises for you. Many international expert panels acknowledge studies that show strong evidence for exercise benefiting knee osteoarthritis involved programs led by physical therapists, who can also recommend biomechanical devices such as orthoses and braces. Page | 2

3. About The Institute Of Sport Physiotherapy The Institute Of Sport Physiotherapy is an ACC-certified injury rehabilitation and physiotherapy service provider based in New Zealand. We have regular in-house training for our Newmarket physio therapists who also attend external courses to broaden their knowledge and keep abreast of current treatment trends. Our treatment therapies, based on our Interferential therapy, are very effective at restoring activity. Because of our superior treatment results, we have been selected to provide our services to various New Zealand national sports teams. Sources: Knee Surgery Does Not Improve Life Quality for Many Patients, Medscape.com Physical Therapy as Good as Surgery for Osteoarthritic Knees and Torn Meniscus, Mercola.com Page | 3