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For patients with painful knee osteoarthritis, tai chi was as helpful
as physical therapy in reducing pain and improving physical
functioning, according to a new study partially funded by the National
Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. The results of the
study, conducted at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, were published in
the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.
In this study, 204 patients age 40 or older who had knee pain and
proven osteoarthritis of the knee were randomly assigned to standardized
group tai chi training (two 1-hour sessions each week for 12 weeks) or
standard one-on-one physical therapy (two 30-minute sessions per week
for 6 weeks followed by 6 additional weeks of home-based exercises
monitored by the research staff). Both groups were then encouraged to
continue their tai chi practice or home exercises for a total of 52
weeks. Patients in the two groups had similar decreases in pain and
improvements in physical functioning after 12 weeks, and the benefits of
treatment were maintained for the full 52 weeks of the study. Patients
in the tai chi group had more improvement in depression symptoms and
quality of life than those in the physical therapy group.
Previous research
has shown that tai chi—a traditional Chinese mind and body practice
that combines meditation with deep breathing, relaxation, and gentle
movements—can reduce pain and improve physical functioning in patients
with knee osteoarthritis, but this is the first study in which tai chi
was compared with a standard treatment that’s known to be helpful. An
important strength of the study was that the participants were typical
of people with knee osteoarthritis; many were obese, and many were
older. Nevertheless, they were able to participate in and benefit from
both of the treatments that were evaluated.
The researchers concluded that standardized tai chi should be
considered as an effective therapeutic option for knee osteoarthritis.
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