AT A GLANCE

A new study published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research confirms the superiority of a mobile health exercise intervention for pain reduction in knee osteoarthritis.¹

“About 1 in 2 patients with knee OA receives a referral or recommendation for exercise. Digital health applications could counteract this undersupply,” explain study authors Dieter et al., who sought to investigate the effectiveness of a 12-week self-directed mobile health exercise intervention (re.flex) when used in addition to usual care.

As part of a monocentric, two-arm, randomized controlled parallel-group trial, the authors compared participants with moderate to severe knee OA in an intervention group (re.flex+usual care) with those in a control group (usual care), focusing on pain reduction and improvement in physical function. Participants in the re.flex group completed a 12-week self-directed app-based and sensor-assisted exercise program with three sessions per week in addition to usual care. The primary outcomes of interest were OA-specific knee pain and physical function, while secondary outcomes included adherence and safety.

According to the authors, 195 participants were enrolled, with 98 allocated to re.flex, and 97 allocated to usual care; the primary analysis finally included 194 participants.

The reduction in pain was significantly larger in the re.flex group compared to the usual care group, with an adjusted mean difference between study groups of 4.8 points. Meanwhile, the improvement in physical function was not statistically significant. Participants adhered to 77% (2705/3528) of all scheduled exercise sessions.

“The self-directed sensor-based mobile health exercise intervention re.flex demonstrates superiority over usual care for pain reduction and justifies this kind of intervention as an alternative exercise delivery mode for patients with knee OA,” conclude the authors.

Reference

1.     Dieter V, Martus P, Seißler D, Serna-Higuita LM, Janssen P, Krauss I. Effectiveness of the self-directed mHealth exercise intervention re.flex in patients with knee osteoarthritis: randomized controlled trial. J Med Internet Res. 2025:27:e71558.