Effectiveness of the Effect of Radial Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy in Addition to Exercise on Pain, Functionality and Walking Distance in Patients With Knee Osteoarthritis: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease characterized by unsuccessful repair of joint damage resulting from stresses in any of the synovial joint tissues. Symptoms include pain (initially only after movement), joint stiffness, limitation of joint movement, feeling of insecurity in the joint, and difficulty walking. The diagnosis of knee osteoarthritis can be easily made with a detailed history and a comprehensive physical examination. Radiographic examinations are used to support clinical findings and exclude other possible pathologies. The main purpose of treating knee osteoarthritis is to reduce pain and make daily life easier. Since there is no standard treatment method, the patient's treatment must be individualized by taking into account age, comorbidity, severity of the clinical picture, patient preferences and cost of treatment. Conservative treatment includes pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment, and the optimal treatment should be applied as a combination of these two methods. Patient education, lifestyle modification, exercise, different physical therapy modalities (TENS, Interferential current, ESWT...), acupuncture are some non-pharmacological methods.

Extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT), which is considered within the scope of conservative treatment, started in the seventies with the practice of breaking ureteric stones and has become one of the physical therapy modalities used in the treatment of various musculoskeletal diseases. Considering the historical development of ESWT, it has started to be used as a therapeutic modality in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis in recent years. The process, which started with animal experiments, continued with human studies, and evidence is presented that ESWT reduces knee pain and contributes to functionality. It is noteworthy that there are few studies and their short follow-up periods. In the light of these studies, it was planned to investigate the effectiveness of ESWT treatment, which will be applied together with exercise, on pain, functionality and walking distance in individuals diagnosed with knee osteoarthritis, in comparison with the control group receiving sham ESWT.