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The knee osteoarthritis (OA) is the most wide-spread chronic degenerative disease of joints and it is one of the most significant world problem of human health, which causes physical inactivity and disability. The motor functions estimation is very important for discovering of negative influence of OA. Although there are several studies in this field, the complex analysis of motor functions in patients with gonarthroosis is absent both pre- and post-operatively. The proposed project is devoted to the study of motor functions recovery in patients with knee OA after surgery related to stage of disease and physical activity of patients. The aim of project is to study motor function recovery in patients with knee osteoarthritis of different stages after surgery.Women and men with knee OA in stage II-IV (Kellgren-Lawrence)aged 45-70 years are volunteers of this study (total number up to 80), who are treated operatively in the Clinic of Traumatology and Orthopaedics, University of Tartu. Age- and gender-matched healthy subjects form controll group (total number up to 40). The subjects are distributed by results of clinic study with taking into account their OA stage, type of surgery and physical activity level in the following groups: 1) women (n=2) and men (n=20) with knee OA in stage II who will be treated by high proximal tibiae osteotomy; 2) women (n=2) and men (n=20) with knee OA in stage III-IV who will be treated by knee total arthroplasty. Third group is healthy men (n=20) and women (n=20). Patients are distributed in two sub-groups: (1) physically active, who perform therapeutic exercises regular three hours per week and (2) physically inactive. The results of this study are planned to be published in international journals and can be used by specialists in rehabilitation, traumatology and orthopaedics, physiotherapists and physiologists. Data are useful for new movement analysis method application (Elite Biomech 2002, Italy) as the first complex set in this field in Estonia and Baltic states.The planned study elucidates the relationships between lower extremities clinical tests and motor functions tests (muscle strength, contractile properties, kinematic characteristics of gait) using modern devices, resulting in collaboration with institutions of other states. As the initial step we plan to collaborate with Palanga Rehabilitation Center (Lithuania), specialized on rehabilitation of patients after knee and hip arthroplasty. |