A comparative study on cryotherapy and wax therapy along with exercise in treatment of early osteoarthritis knee

Background and purpose: osteoarthritis of knee is a commonly observed type of condition in south India, the knee movements are important for walking, squatting and other functional day today activities. Physiotherapy plays a vital role in the management of patients with osteoarthritis, by means of exercises, and thermotherapy/ cryotherapy. The aim of this study is to relieve pain by comparing wax therapy and cryotherapy with exercise for early stage of osteoarthritis knee. Methods: twenty subjects were recruited, age from 35 to50 years. There physical activities were measured before and after treatment. The main outcome measurements was VAS a scale. The 20 subjects were divided into 2 groups; group A and group B. group A received wax bath therapy and group B received cryotherapy. Treatment last for 7 days. Each session lasted up to 30 min. Both the wax bath therapy and cryotherapy were found to be effective in treating early stage of osteoarthritis knee. The group B subjects in this study achieved more significant results compare to group A subjects. These results support the value of cryotherapy with exercise management for management of early stage of osteoarthritis knee