Ultrasound with mineral water or aqua gel to reduce pain and improve the WOMAC of knee osteoarthritis

Abstract

Aims: Osteoarthritis is the most degenerative joint disease. The aim was to investigate the effects of ultrasound using mineral water or aqua sonic gel on severity of knee pain, measured by the visual analog scale and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index (WOMAC). Materials and methods: Thirty women with bilateral osteoarthritis of the knee were assigned to two groups: ultrasound with mineral water (group 1, n = 15) or with aqua sonic gel (group 2, n = 15). Both groups underwent 4 weeks intervention, three per week. The participants were assessed using the visual analog scale and the WOMAC. Tests were performed before and after interventions. Results: Both groups had significantly reduced pain and improved WOMAC compared with preintervention values. Discussion: The ultrasound with mineral water group had more pronounced improvement at p-value < 0.001. Conclusion: Ultrasound with mineral water is preferable in treatment of knee OA.

Lay abstract: Knee pain is terrible for the patient and affects the locomotor activity of the person. Our study compares an ultrasonic device with traditional gel for the treatment of knee pain versus an ultrasonic device with mineral water from natural source. We compared treatment results after 1-month treatment period on the pain and the physical function of these patients. Our results demonstrated that treatment with ultrasound with mineral water showed superior patient improvement in terms of pain and physical function.

Keywords::

• knee osteoarthritis
• mineral water
• ultrasound
• VAS
• WOMAC

Author contributions

The author collected the references for the study, obtained the mineral water, conceived the study concept and design, treated the patients and performed all the assessments before and after the treatments. Furthermore, the author interpreted the data and wrote the manuscript.

Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank all the patients who participated in the study, the Scientific Studies and Consultations Center, Faculty Of Science, Ain Shams University, Egypt.

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.