FRIDAY, Feb. 16, 2007 (HealthDay News) -- Music-exercise videos can help patients who've had total knee replacement surgery get more in tune with their rehabilitation program, a U.S. study finds.
Researchers in Michigan created a video specifically designed for patients undergoing rehabilitation after having knee replacement. The video featured an instructor demonstrating exercises and offering reminders about how to do the movements correctly and avoid injury.
In this study of 45 patients, about half used the video during their rehabilitation, while the remainder did the exercises on their own, the norm for most patients.
Patients who used the video returned to their regular daily activities an average of 59 percent sooner than patients who exercised without the video. The patients who used the video also had significantly better knee status and overall function at six weeks and eight weeks after their surgery.
The video significantly improved patients' understanding of the exercise program, their confidence in being able to do the exercises correctly, and their overall satisfaction with the rehabilitation program, the study authors said.
"The video works, in part, because patients have fun doing the exercises. When the program is fun and motivating, patients are more likely to actually do it," Dr. Thomas G. Ryan, assistant clinical professor at Michigan State University Kalamazoo Center for Medical Studies and an orthopedic surgeon at Kalamazoo Orthopaedic Center, said in a prepared statement.
The study was expected to be presented Friday in San Diego at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.
More information
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons has more about total knee replacement.
