The Effects of a Knitting Program on Osteoarthritis Symptoms in Elderly Women

Background: Exercise therapy is effective in reducing symptoms and disability associated with hand osteoarthritis (HOA) but has low adherence. An intervention consisting in a meaningful occupation, such as knitting, may improve adherence to treatment. This pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) studies the adherence and clinical effectiveness of a knitting program in older females suffering from HOA to evaluate the acceptability of this intervention and assess the feasibility of a larger-scale RCT.

Methods: Single-blind, two-arm pilot RCT with a parallel group design with 40 participants (20 control, 20 experimental). Control participants are given an educational pamphlet and assigned to a waiting list. The knitting program (-8-week duration) has two components: bi-weekly 20-minute group knitting sessions and 20-minute home daily knitting on the 5 remaining weekdays. Measures included knitting adherence (implementation outcomes) as well as stiffness, pain, functional status, hand physical activity level, patient's global impression of change, health-related quality of life, self-efficacy, and grip strength (clinical outcomes measured throughout the 8-week program and 4 weeks after the intervention).

Inclusion criteria

• Meet the clinical and radiographic criteria of definite HOA set out by the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) and have experienced pain symptoms for at least 3 months;
• Be a woman aged between 50 and 85 years; 3) have moderate to severe morning stiffness (defined as a score ≥ 4 on a 10 cm visual analogue scale at the time of study entry;
• Display X-ray evidence of joint space narrowing of the hands;
• Have no previous experience with knitting or have not knitted in the last 6 months;
• Be available for sessions at the senior's club twice weekly;
• Be able to understand written and verbal English instructions.

Exclusion criteria

• Suffered from other orthopedic or rheumatologic diseases (e.g., inflammatory arthritis), or showed evidence of chondrocalcinosis;
• Had a history of finger joint surgery;
• Suffered from an acute disease, such as uncontrolled diabetes mellitus, untreated hypertension, neurological deficits (motor or sensory), cognitive deficit or mental health conditions;
• Were taking OA medication that was expected to change during the study period;
• Were receiving current rehabilitation treatments or any other pain-related treatment besides medication for OA;
• Had received a corticosteroid injection in a finger joint within the last 6 months;
• Planned to move outside the region within 6 months.