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Effect of an Education Programme for Patients With Osteoarthritis in Primary Care - a Randomized Controlled Trial

Not Applicable
Completed
Conditions
Osteoarthritis in the Hip, Knee and Hand
Interventions
Other: Patient education programme
Registration Number
NCT00979914
Lead Sponsor
Lund University
Brief Summary

Osteoarthritis is a common disease. The core treatment is often patient education. The aim of this study is therefore to study the effect of a patient education programme for patients with osteoarthritis in primary health care.

Detailed Description

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative disease, considered to be one of the major national diseases that cause suffering for affected patients and costs for society.The predominant symptoms are pain, stiffness and impaired quality of life, often together with psychological distress. Treatment often consists of medication. Later in the disease, when the joint is destroyed, joint replacement surgery commonly occurs. Physical exercises aimed to increase muscle strength, endurance, proprioception and stability have proved to influence cartilage as well as function, symptoms and quality of life positively. Physical exercise may also reduce the need for hospital care after knee joint replacement.

Research suggests that patient education is feasible and valuable in terms of improvements in quality of life, in function, in well-being and improved coping . Accordingly, guidelines recommend education as a core treatment for osteoarthritis.

Patient education programmes are often defined as a planned learning experience to influence a patient's knowledge and health behaviour \[13\]. There are various types of patient education. It can be given by a physician as part of consultation, in small groups or delivered by a multi-disciplinary team \[13, 14\] Since 1994, Primary Health Care in Malmö has used a patient education programme directed towards OA. The programme has been developed by physiotherapists and occupational therapists in primary health care and has been implemented in the ordinary work.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
100
Inclusion Criteria
  • Clinical diagnosis of osteoarthritis
Exclusion Criteria
  • Must be able to speak and understand swedish

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Patient education programmePatient education programmePatients with osteoarthritis who were referred to the patient education programme.The patients followed the patient education programme.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
One-leg rising from sitting to standingAt baseline and at follow up after 6 months
Grip Ability TestAt baseline and at follow up after 6 months
Arthritis self-efficacy scaleAt baseline and at follow up after 6 months
EQ5DAt baseline and at follow-up after 6 months
Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Bipedal rising from sitting to standingAt baseline and at follow up after 6 months
One-legged jumpAt baseline and at follow up after 6 months
Standing on one leg with eyes open and standing on one leg with eyes closedAt baseline and at follow up after 6 months

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Primary Health Care

🇸🇪

Malmö, Skåne, Sweden

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