Results (
Thai) 1: 
[Copy]Copied!
 
INTRODUCTIONSymptomatic radiographic knee osteoarthritis (OA) has a functional impact on 12% of adults aged 60 or older—4.3 million people—in the United States(1). The knee is one of the joints most commonly affected by OA(2). Given projected increases in the aging and obese populations, the incidence of OA of the knee is predicted to rise(3). Moreover, despite earlier research indicating joint cartilage degeneration as a possible primary cause of knee OA—initiating internal joint inflammation, edema, and pain(2)—recent research has investigated the causative role of the quadriceps muscle, which is located on the anterior thigh. In this muscle, weakness, impairments in function, influence on knee joint loading, and proprioceptive deficits seem to contribute to the development or progression of knee OA(4). Sufficient quadriceps function is essential to basic activities of daily living such as rising from a chair, standing, walking, and ascending and descending stairs(5). Researchers have found correlations among quadriceps weakness, increased pain, and altered walking patterns(6). Symptom management is typically the priority in OA treatment(7), and conventional health care management of knee OA involves nonpharmacological measures—such as patient education, exercise, physiotherapy, and braces—followed by pharmaceutical management and surgery(8).Previous research(2) has not definitively identified the cause of knee OA. Therefore, the focus of treatment for knee OA is the management of its symptoms with emphasis on self-management therapies such as exercise( 9) and complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies, such as massage(10). Evidence suggests, as noted above, that the quadriceps may play a role in the disease—hence, the emphasis on massage on that muscle in the present study. Following this further, the Perlman et al. 2006 research study(11) on massage for knee, OA suggested “massage therapy is efficacious in the treatment of OA of the knee, with beneficial effects persisting for weeks following treatment cessation.”
This research provided the first examination of the beneficial use of massage therapy as a single modality in the treatment of OA of the knee. Although the trial revealed significant results, the continued use of therapist-administered massage as a regular treatment is often cost-prohibitive in the long-term, nonpharmacological self-management of knee OA. Additionally, in a recent 2012 dose-finding study, Perlman et al.(12) established, as an optimal dose, a 60-minute weekly Swedish massage as a beneficial eight-week protocol for OA of the knee.
The reported benefits of massage include breaking the pain cycle, improving function, reducing edema, promoting relaxation, and facilitating healing in various medical conditions(13). A plethora of research has explored the use of massage for lower back pain and other chronic musculoskeletal conditions(14). A primary goal of conventional treatment for knee OA is self-management of its symptoms with exercise, and research has concluded that exercise does provide benefits for people with knee OA(15). The exploration of a safe, convenient, cost-effective intervention or adjunct therapy that may reduce chronic physical symptoms and affect range of motion in knee OA is the topic addressed by this study. It has examined the effectiveness of a self-massage intervention therapy on knee pain, joint stiffness, physical functioning, and knee joint range of motion for participants diagnosed with knee OA.
Being translated, please wait..
