Bioactive Knee Sleeve for Osteoarthritis: A Small Cohort Study

Abstract

Objectives: Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most prevalent musculoskeletal ailments worldwide. Numerous conservative therapies exist, but evidence for such treatments remains conflicting. Recently, there has been growing interest surrounding bioactive sleeves for managing knee arthritis; however, the literature on their efficacy for relieving pain and improving function in the setting of knee OA is limited. As such, we sought to investigate the effect of a bioactive sleeve on patient-reported outcome measures in a small cohort of patients with OA.Methods: Patients with knee OAwere given a bioactive sleeve (Reparel, Chico, CA) and asked to refrain from lifestyle modifications and intraarticular corticosteroid injections. Lysholm Knee Score, Oxford Knee Score, Knee Injury and OA Outcome Score (KOOS), Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation, and Visual Analog Scale score were obtained at baseline, 2 weeks, 6 weeks, and 3 months. OA severity was evaluated using the Kellgren and Lawrence (KL) classification system. The Wilcoxon signed rank test was used to compare baseline patient-reported outcomes with 2-week, 6-week, and 3-month time points. Bivariate correlation was used to evaluate the relation between patient-reported outcome measures and KL classification. Results:The cohort was composed of 14 participants-4 males and 10 females-with a mean age of 62.2 ± 13.2 years and a body mass index of 33.7 ± 5.8. The average KL grade was 2.9 (range 2-4). KOOS pain, symptoms, activities of daily living, and quality of life increased significantly at 2 weeks, 6 weeks, and 3 months. KOOS sport and recreation significantly increased at 3 months. The Oxford Knee Score was significantly greater at 2 weeks, 6 weeks, and 3 months. The Lysholm Knee Score was significantly greater at 6 weeks and 3 months. The Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation attained significant improvement at 3 months, and the Visual Analog Scale improvement was significant at 2 weeks. No statistically significant difference was attained with University of California at Los Angeles activity score. Outcome scores did not correlate with KL classification.Conclusions: These data suggest that a bioactive sleeve may improve patient-reported pain, symptoms, and function in the setting of knee OA. Further research is needed to better understand the role of bioactive sleeves for patients with knee arthritis.

Impact of a Semi-Rigid Knee Orthotic Intervention on Pain, Physical Activity, and Functional Capacity in Patients with Medial Knee Osteoarthritis

“…All functional capacity variables did not deviate from the normal distribution. As both pain and PA involved non-normally distributed variables, all comparisons between the pretest (W0) and post-test (W6) values were performed using Wilcoxon tests [ 21 ]. Functional capacity variables were tested using t -tests.…”

“…This type of orthoses does not intend to impact skeletal alignment but rather to provide joint support, mainly attributed to an improvement in proprioception by the simulation of the cutaneous mechanoreceptors [ 14 , 18 ]. Beneficial effects on gait and balance [ 19 , 20 ], pain [ 18 , 21 ], and functional capacity [ 21 , 22 ] after the use of sleeves for KOA have been reported. Another type of knee orthosis designed to strike a balance between support and flexibility is the semi-rigid knee orthosis.…”