Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common cause of progressive
degeneration in a joint. It is common in adults particularly
over 65 years of age. As it progresses, OA can cause pain and
disability. When a major joint like the knee is involved it can
lead to difficulty with basic activities like walking. This can
lead to lower quality of life. Severe impairments may require a
knee replacement to fix, but there are several steps to decrease
pain and disability before this point. The most common steps
include medications and a physical therapy program. Researchers
at the University of Minnesota wanted to better understand which
types of physical therapies may best help people with OA. The
systematic review, published in Annals of Internal Medicine,
found that strength, aerobic and pool exercises were effective
at reducing pain and disability due to osteoarthritis. The
systematic review included 193 randomized trials that compared
different physical therapy techniques to usual care or no active
treatment. The trials includ