Feasibility of a Web-based, Peer-supported Exercise Program for Patients With Hip and/or Knee Osteoarthritis

Summary

In this project, a web-based exercise program is developed in co-creation between specialized health care, the Norwegian Association for Rheumatic diseases (NRF) and a group of experienced patient representatives. The project emerges from the evidence that exercise is recommended as first-line treatment for patients with chronic diseases like hip- and knee-osteoarthritis (OA). However, the number of patients in need of targeted exercise will increase considerably the next decades, and their treatment needs cannot be fully handled within the health care system. Development of innovative and effective treatment trajectories and follow-up strategies is urgently required. Peer-support is recognized as an effective way to increase patients' long-term adherence to exercise. Thus, patient-organizations may be an unutilized resource in support and follow-up of patients who need long-term exercise as part of their treatment plan. After discharge from examination in hospital, patients with hip/knee OA will be recruited to follow-up in a novel web-based, peer-supported exercise program, and the feasibility of the intervention will be evaluated.

Conditions

• Osteoarthritis, Knee
• Osteoarthritis, Hip

Interventions

OTHER

Exercise

Participants will be offered to take part in a 5-hour Learning and Mastery-course at Diakonhjemmet Hospital, receiving information about the osteoarthritis disease, symptoms and the importance of exercise and physical activity. Participants will then be given a weekly web-based exercise program (12 weeks) consisting of three aerobic exercise sessions per week. The exercise program consists of five levels, and the participants will each week be guided to the most appropriate level based on their measured physical fitness level and the weekly exercise diary. The participants will at initial assessment at Diakonhjemmet Hospital be instructed to use Borgs scale to adjust exercise level. Based on the weekly exercise diary the participants will also get motivational messages by email.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• The Norwegian Rheumatism Association

  collaborator OTHER

• University of Melbourne

  collaborator OTHER

• Extrastiftelsen

  collaborator OTHER

• Diakonhjemmet Hospital

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Anne Therese Tveter, PhD · National Resource Center on Research in Rheumatology

Study Design

Allocation

NA

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Model

SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age

40 Years

Max Age

80 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2019-10-09

Primary Completion

2020-06-01

Completion

2020-06-01

Countries

• Norway

Study Locations