Ali Ahmad, Mohammad Younus Khan, Zain Ali.
Non-operative strategies in the treatment of osteoarthritis of knee joint.
Pak J Surg Jan ;24(2):122-6.

Objective: To evaluate the role of non-operative strategies in the treatment of osteoarthritis of knee joint. Design & Duration: Analytical, cross sectional study from March 2004 to February 2008. Setting: Department of Orthopaedics, Hamdard University Hospital, Karachi. Patients: A total of 2000 patients presenting with osteoarthritis of the knee joint were included. Methodology: The demographic characteristics of the patients were recorded, and they were divided clinically in to three groups according to severity of the disease and treated by different treatment regimes. The response to the treatment modalities were further evaluated. Results: Majority of the patients (1251-62.5%) had moderate, while 387(19.35%) had mild and 362(18.1%) severe disease. Out of the total 2000 patients, 1974(98.7%) were symptom free by conservative measures and only 26(1.3%) patients required further management by invasive procedures e.g. arthroscopy, high tibial osteotomy and total knee replacement. Conclusion: Non-operative management strategies provide the mainstay of treatment in osteoarthritis of the knee joint in majority of the patients. Early diagnosis and proper counselling of the patient about the disease contributes greatly in its management.

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