Pain Management in Knee Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee is the commonest degenerative joint disease affecting older adults. Risk factors for the knee OA includes female gender, advanced age, overweight, obesity, previous knee injuries, previous knee surgery, and certain jobs that require continuous knee bending. Pain is the major symptom of knee OA and increased pain causes reduced physical function and poor quality of life. In addition to pain, patients may have joint stiffness, knee extensor muscle weakness, and altered proprioception. A multitude of structural, physical, and psychosocial factors influences symptom and severity of pain in knee OA. Rehabilitation of knee OA aims to train the patients in coping strategies, improves physical health, quality of life, and maintains their independence in daily livings. Management of knee OA often requires a combination of pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic treatment approaches.