Physiotherapeutic Strategies and Their Current Evidence for Canine Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common and debilitating condition in domestic dogs. Alongside pharmaceutical interventions and weight loss, exercise and physiotherapy (PT) are important measures in maintaining patient mobility and quality of life. Physiotherapy for OA aims to reduce pain, optimize muscular...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Veterinary sciences 2022-12, Vol.10 (1), p.2
Main Authors: Mille, Monika Anna, McClement, Jamie, Lauer, Susanne
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Analgesics
Arthritis
Body weight loss
Care and treatment
Cartilage
Decision making
Disease
dog
Dogs
Domestic animals
Exercise
Home environment
Lasers in medicine
Lasers in surgery
Manipulative therapy
Mobility
Muscle strength
Osteoarthritis
Pain
Patients
Physical therapy
physiotherapy
Quality of life
Range of motion
Review
Systematic review
Therapeutics, Physiological
Veterinarians
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Summary:Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common and debilitating condition in domestic dogs. Alongside pharmaceutical interventions and weight loss, exercise and physiotherapy (PT) are important measures in maintaining patient mobility and quality of life. Physiotherapy for OA aims to reduce pain, optimize muscular function and maintain joint function. Physiotherapeutic plans typically include PT exercises combined with therapeutic modalities, lifestyle and environmental modifications to improve the patient's overall quality of life and function. Information on therapeutic clinical efficacy of physiotherapeutic measures for canine OA is still very limited. Thus, physiotherapeutic strategies are still primarily based on evidence extrapolated from human protocols tailored to people with OA. The authors propose a simple systematic PT approach for canine OA, prioritizing measures according to simplicity, cost effectiveness and practicality. This guide (the "Physiotherapy Pyramid") aims to provide a clear stratified approach to simplify decision making and planning for owners, veterinarians and veterinary physiotherapists, leading to more straightforward design and implementation of treatment plans. Measures are implemented starting at the base of the pyramid, subsequently progressing to the top, allowing effective and practical interventions to be prioritized. The levels of the pyramid are in ascending order: environmental modification, exercise plan, OA-specific home exercises and treatment by a veterinary physiotherapist.
ISSN:2306-7381
2306-7381
DOI:10.3390/vetsci10010002