Effect of Enhanced Exercise Program on Pain and Physical Activity for Patients after Total Knee Arthroplasty

Abstract

Context: Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is considered the most effective orthopedic procedure for treating knee osteoarthritis. The need for knee replacement is predicted to increase six-fold between 2005 and 2030 to reflect an increasingly yet functionally demanding population.
Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of an enhanced exercise program on pain and physical activity after total knee arthroplasty. Methods: Quasi-experimental (pre/post-test) design was utilized in this study. The study was carried out in the orthopedic department, at Benha University Hospital, and followed the patients through the orthopedic outpatient clinic from the beginning of May 2020 till the beginning of May 2021. A purposive sample of 64 patients was recruited to achieve the aim of this study. Four tools were used to collect the study data. These are the structured interview questionnaire to assess patients' knowledge regarding total knee arthroplasty, Barthel ADL index scale, Lysholm knee scoring scale, and Numeric Pain Rating Scale to assess the effect of the enhanced exercise program. Results: Showed that nearly two-thirds of the study sample was ≤60 years old, females, and married. The study also showed a statistically significant difference between pre-and post- enhanced exercise program in terms of total knowledge mean score among the study sample, as well as an increase in the total mean score in Barthel ADL index, decrease in Lysholm knee scoring, and pain score after one month and after three months of enhanced program exercise implementation.

Conclusion: Implementing an enhanced exercise program for patients with total knee arthroplasty effectively improved knowledge, increased physical activity (Barthel ADL index), and decreased Lysholm knee scoring, and pain score. The present study recommended including an enhanced exercise program in the treatment plan for patients with total knee arthroplasty to improve patients' knowledge and practices. Also, repeating the study on a larger probability sample to achieve generalization of the findings.