Evaluating the Effectiveness of Different Forms of Physical Therapy in the Treatment the Symptoms of Knee Osteoarthritis

Introduction: Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common cause of chronic joint symptoms and disability in the elderly. Integral treatment of this disease is physical therapy. The object of this study were four methods of physical: LLLT (low level laser therapy), cryotherapy, magnetic therapy, electrotherapy (interferential current). Material and Methods: The study group consisted of 80 patients (47 women and 33 men), ages 46-75 years (mean age 62.4 years) with a diagnosis of knee osteoarthritis. Patients were divided into four groups: Group I (n = 20) -LLLT, group II (n = 20) -cryotherapy, group III (n = 20) -magnetotherapy and group IV (n = 20) -electrotherapy (interferential current). In all patients, before and after treatment performed: assessment of pain using a visual analogue scale (VAS); squat test and measurement circuits knee joints. Results: The studies demonstrated the effectiveness of all forms of therapy used to treat the symptoms of knee osteoarthritis, with no statistically significant differences between the groups.