Impacto de um programa estruturado de Fisioterapia Aquática em idosas com osteoartrite de joelho

Abstract

Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is a joint syndrome that has a high incidence among the elderly population, especially women, and may cause severe functional impairments, becoming a serious public health issue due to the increasing number of the elderly population. Aquatic Physical Therapy is commonly indicated for the treatment of rheumatic diseases, especially for OA. Objective: to investigate the impact that Aquatic Physical Therapy has on pain, functionality and muscle function of elderly women with knee OA. Method: 73 volunteers being 65 years old and over were randomly assigned to the intervention group (n=37), that went through treatment in a warm pool (twice/week, 6 weeks, 50 minutes/session) or to the control group (n=36) that only went through an educational program. Muscular performance (strength, power and endurance) of the quadriceps and hamstrings muscles were assessed using an isokinetic dynamometer. Pain, joint stiffness and functionality were also assessed, using the WOMAC questionnaire. Results: the data were analyzed using the SPSS 12.0 statistics program and a significance level of 5% (-value = 0,05) was considered. On the final assessment, after six weeks, the group that received Aquatic Physical Therapy presented a statistically superior improvement in pain (p=0,008), functionality (p=0,004), strength and power of the hamstrings (p=0,005 and p=0,001). Conclusions: this study demonstrated that an Aquatic Physical Therapy program results in a significant improvement of pain, functionality, strength and power of the hamstrings of elderly women with knee OA.