A Clinical Observation On The Improvement Of The Joint Function Of Middle-aged And Elderly Knee Osteoarthritis By Hot Compress Of Traditional Chinese Medicine And Functional Exercise

Objective:To investigate the effect of herbal fomentation and functional exercise on joint function in middle and old aged knee osteoarthritis patients.Method:A total of 120 knee osteoarthritis inpatients chosen from the Department of Rheumatology in NO.2 Hospital affiliated to Guiyang Collage of Traditional Chinese Medicine who reached the inclusion criteria were randomly divided into four groups named A,B,C and D by the ratio of 1:1:1:1 through Excel application,each of them contained 30 subjects.Patients of group A received conventional nursing and meloxicam(Po.7.5mg qd);subjects of group B were given the same therapy and conventional nursing with intervention of herbal fomentation;group C and group D received the same therapy and conventional nursing as group B,group C took functional exercise after being treated by conventional nursing 4 hours later,while group D took the same exercise immediately.After one course(4 weeks)treatment,the visual analogue scoring(VAS),knee function scoring(Lysholm),WHOQOL-Bref scale and Barthel index(BI)were applied to evaluate the disease severity and life quality before and after the therapy.Result:1.After treatment,knee functional scores of group A,B,C and D have been improved,which showed significant statistic differences(P<0.05)in improving knee joint function.Meanwhile,scores of group C and D have been changed significantly(P<0.01).The total effective rates of group A,B,C and D were 48.28%,70.00%,92.86%and 96.67%respectively,which indicated there were significant differences(P<0.01)in comparison of the efficacy of joint function.2.Decreased painfulness scores were observed in all groups(P<0.05 or P<0.01).The total effective rates of group A,B,C and D were 79.31%,83.33%,92.86%and 96.67%respectively,which suggested significant differences(P<0.01)in comparison of the pain curative effect.3.Overall score of living quality showed significant statistic differences before and after the treatment,as well as sores of daily living ability.4.The levels of serum pro-inflammatory cytokines in all groups were reduced noticeably after the intervention,suggesting that the differences were significant statistically.Conclusion:Herbal fomentation along with functional exercise can improve the joint function,alleviate painfulness and enhance living quality in middle and old aged knee osteoarthritis patients.