Knee Arthroplasty Rehabilitation Outcomes Study

Summary

The objective of the KAROS study is to compare rehabilitation outcomes between 3 proposed protocols and a current standard of care protocol for the purpose of identifying better practice for outpatient rehabilitation among patients with single total knee replacement. The 3 advanced protocols involve use of an anti-gravity treadmill and/or the patterned electrical neuromuscular stimulation (PENS). Both medical modalities have been cleared by the FDA to be used in medical rehabilitation, including total knee replacement.

Conditions

• Total Knee Arthroplasty
• Rehabilitation

Interventions

OTHER

Anti-gravity treadmill

The intervention is to ask study participants to ambulate using an anti-gravity treadmill that integrates patented, NASA Differential Air Pressure (DAP) technology -- a precise air calibration system -- to uniformly reduce gravitational load and body weight during the warm-up phase of an outpatient physical therapy following a single total knee replacement.

OTHER

PENS - neuro-muscular stimulation

The intervention is to ask study participants to warm up using Patterned Electrical Neuromuscular Stimulation (PENS) - that closely replicates the body's normal muscle and nerve firing patterns -- on his/her surgical leg in conjunction with a recumbent bike or a Nu-step bike during the warm-up phase of an outpatient physical therapy following a single total knee replacement.

OTHER

Anti-gravity treadmill & PENS - neuro-muscular stimulation

The intervention is to ask study participants to ambulate using an anti-gravity treadmill in conjunction with use of Patterned Electrical Neuromuscular Stimulation (PENS) during the warm-up phase of an outpatient physical therapy following a single total knee replacement.

OTHER

Recumbent or Nu-step bike

This is the active comparator of the trial that participants are asked to use either a recumbent or Nu-step bike normally seen in an outpatient physical therapy clinic to warm-up during a physical therapy session following a single total knee replacement.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• MedStar National Rehabilitation Network

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Michele Vita, DPT · MedStar National Rehabilitation Network

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

40 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2014-10-31

Primary Completion

2017-12-31

Completion

2017-12-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations