THE ACUTE IMPACT OF LOWER BODY POSITIVE PRESSURE TREADMILL WALKING IN INDIVIDUALS WITH KNEE OSTEOARTHRITIS: A PILOT STUDY.

OBJECTIVE

Determine acute symptomatic, gait, and biological effects of lower extremity loading during lower body positive pressure (LBPP) treadmill walking in individuals with knee osteoarthritis (OA).

METHODS

Participants with knee OA (n = 32) above the age of 50 performed two-45-minute walking sessions at least 1 week apart. Individuals walked at self-selected speed on the treadmill at 100% bodyweight (BW) or 50%BW. The primary outcome was change in serum cartilage oligomeric matrix protein (COMP), with other outcome measures including change in knee joint pain, exercise intensity, gait parameters, and the concentration of other serum biomarkers of joint disease.

RESULTS

Across all timepoints, 50%BW walking, was associated with significant reductions in knee pain compared to 100%BW (p < 0.05 for all) with no significant difference in duration of moderate-intensity exercise. 50%BW was associated with significant decreases in cadence (p < 0.001) and increased stride length (p = 0.008). Biomarker analyses demonstrated 100%BW walking was associated with a significant increase in COMP at 45 minutes compared to baseline (p = 0.032), not observed with 50% BW.

CONCLUSION

50%BW walking in knee OA using an LBPP treadmill acutely reduces joint pain, improves gait parameters, and does not increase markers of cartilage turnover. Future studies should investigate the longitudinal benefits of this rehabilitation approach.