NEW AUSTRALIAN STANDARDS FOR ARTHRITIC KNEES MEAN YOU PROBABLY WON’T BE GOING UNDER THE KNIFE
In August 2024, the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care ¹ revised its Clinical Care Standard for Osteoarthritis of the knee ↗.
Research Findings
The primary findings are based on current research, and:
Reinforce that surgery should be used as a last resort. Instead, exercise and weight loss should be considered the best forms of treatment for people with osteoarthritis of the knee.
Reinforce that osteoarthritis of the knee is a clinical diagnosis based on history and examination. Scans are usually not required but if needed, a plain x-ray is the preferred investigation.
Reinforce that patients are not offered opioid analgesics for knee osteoarthritis because the risk of harm outweighs the benefits.
Treatment for Osteoarthritis
At Shellharbour Physiotherapy, our Physiotherapists ↗ and Exercise Physiologists ↗ are experts in prescribing safe exercise, shown to be helpful in building muscle strength and decreasing pain in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee.
Physiotherapist Kyle Hardie ↗
Good Life with Osteoarthritis: Denmark
In addition, Shellharbour Physiotherapy offer classes GLA:D ↗ (Good Life with Osteoarthritis: Denmark) education and exercise classes with knee osteoarthritis.
These classes can be accessed directly by contacting ↗ Shellharbour Physiotherapy, or via your general practitioner.
Patients during a GLA:D ↗ class.
References
[1]. Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care. Osteoarthritis of the knee. August 2024
[2]. ABC RN Drive 15th August 2024
¹ The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care is the national health care standards agency for all health services, general practices, pathology and medical imaging providers in Australia.