Hip strengthening exercises improve outcome in knee osteoarthritis patients

A recent study by Dias Tina Thomas and colleagues shows strong support for the practice of hip abductor muscle strengthening exercises as a rehabilitation therapy for patients with knee osteoarthritis. The findings of this study were published in BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders.

Knee osteoarthritis is one of the main causes of disability worldwide. Hip abductor activation and strength are connected to joint loading and progression during weight-bearing exercises and are crucial for maintaining postural balance during transfers. Lack of force production from the lower extremities may result from weak hip abductors, placing stress on the medial tibiofemoral joint. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of strengthening the hip abductor on knee joint loading, knee pain, and functional outcome measures in individuals with knee osteoarthritis.

Through identify the trials published in English from the beginning to December 2020, databases including PubMed, Scopus, EMBASE, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) database, and PEDro were examined. Included were randomized controlled trials that looked at how strengthening the hip abductor muscles affected knee joint loading, knee pain, and functional end measures in people with osteoarthritis of the knee. For the meta-analysis and creation of the forest plots, RevMan 5.4 was employed. Using the PEDro scale, the listed studies' quality was evaluated.

The key findings of this study were:

29 full-text articles were selected from the 260 hits that the search returned. 

Seven randomized controlled trials were included in the review, and three studies with excellent methodological quality were considered for the meta-analysis. 

The hip abductor strengthening intervention was preferred above the control group in the articles' meta-analysis. 

Hip abductor strengthening substantially improved the WOMAC scores and decreased the VAS at 95% confidence interval. Strengthening the hip abductor muscle had a favorable effect on knee pain and functional results, according to all of the included trials.

In conclusion, the results of this review have helped to clarify the role, significance, and effects of hip abductor strengthening in people with knee osteoarthritis.

Reference: 

Thomas, D. T., R, S., Prabhakar, A. J., Dineshbhai, P. V., & Eapen, C. (2022). Hip abductor strengthening in patients diagnosed with knee osteoarthritis – a systematic review and meta-analysis. In BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders (Vol. 23, Issue 1). Springer Science and Business Media LLC. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12891-022-05557-6