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FPIN's Clinical Inquiries
From the Family Practice Inquiries Network

Physical Therapy for Osteoarthritis Knee Pain

Melissa Neuman, MD
Martin Keil, MD, PhD
Kristen DeSanto, MSLS, MS, RD

American Family Physician. 2025;111(4):367-368.

Author disclosure: No relevant financial relationships.

MELISSA NEUMAN, MD, and MARTIN KEIL, MD, PHD, University of Colorado Family Medicine Residency, Denver

KRISTEN DESANTO, MSLS, MS, RD, University of Colorado Health Sciences Library, Denver

Address correspondence to Melissa Neuman, MD, at melissa.neuman@cuanschutz.edu.

Author disclosure: No relevant financial relationships.

  1. 1.Goh SL, Persson MSM, Stocks J, et al. Efficacy and potential determinants of exercise therapy in knee and hip osteoarthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Ann Phys Rehabil Med. 2019;62(5):356-365.
  2. 2.Ma J, Chen X, Xin J, et al. Overall treatment effects of aquatic physical therapy in knee osteoarthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Orthop Surg Res. 2022;17(1):190.
  3. 3.Messier SP, Mihalko SL, Beavers DP, et al. Effect of high-intensity strength training on knee pain and knee joint compressive forces among adults with knee osteoarthritis: the START randomized clinical trial. JAMA. 2021;325(7):646-657.
  4. 4.Deyle GD, Allen CS, Allison SC, et al. Physical therapy versus glucocorticoid injection for osteoarthritis of the knee. N Engl J Med. 2020;382(15):1420-1429.
  5. 5.Deyle GD, Henderson NE, Matekel RL, et al. Effectiveness of manual physical therapy and exercise in osteoarthritis of the knee. A randomized, controlled trial. Ann Intern Med. 2000;132(3):173-181.

Clinical Inquiries provides answers to questions submitted by practicing family physicians to the Family Physicians Inquiries Network (FPIN). Members of the network select questions based on their relevance to family medicine. Answers are drawn from an approved set of evidence-based resources and undergo peer review. The strength of recommendations and the level of evidence for individual studies are rated using criteria developed by the Evidence-Based Medicine Working Group (https://www.cebm.net).

The complete database of evidence-based questions and answers is copyrighted by FPIN. If interested in submitting questions or writing answers for this series, go to https://www.fpin.org or email questions@fpin.org.

Copyright © Family Physicians Inquiries Network. Used with permission.

This series is coordinated by John E. Delzell Jr., MD, MSPH, associate medical editor.

A collection of FPIN’s Clinical Inquiries published in AFP is available at https://www.aafp.org/afp/fpin.

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