A study shows that fear of possible harm of exercise is what stops many people with knee pain from activity, rather than the actual pain.
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common cause of pain and stiffness in the knees.
Despite physical activity being known to alleviate symptoms, only one in 10 people with OA regularly exercise.
A groundbreaking study from the University of South Australia explored why people with knee OA might be inactive.
The researchers found that many patients subconsciously believe that exercise could be harmful, even though medical advice suggests otherwise.
The study revealed that 69% of people with knee pain held stronger implicit (subconscious) beliefs that exercise was harmful compared to those without pain.
This finding underscores the complex relationship between pain and exercise, highlighting that there can be a significant difference between what people say and what they unconsciously believe.
Lead researcher Brian Pulling emphasized the importance of understanding these subconscious beliefs for clinicians treating knee OA.
Traditional questionnaires used to assess fear of movement may not fully capture the deep-seated beliefs that influence behavior.
The researchers developed a tool to evaluate these implicit beliefs about exercise, discovering that even those who claimed not to fear exercise often held hidden beliefs that movement was potentially adverse to their knees.
This research indicates that implicit beliefs can be more predictive of actual behavior than would be self-reported attitudes.
The new tool, an online implicit association test, measures these beliefs by prompting quick associations with words and images related to safety and danger.
This method avoids the influence of deliberation or social desirability.
Associate professor Tasha Stanton noted that the tool could identify people who might struggle to increase their activity levels and could benefit from targeted interventions like pain science education, exposure-based therapy or cognitive functional therapy.
Researchers are now investigating if these implicit beliefs directly influence behavior and invite people to take the Implicit Association Test, which provides comparative results in about seven minutes.
This research aims to provide more accurate insights to help health professionals better support patients with knee OA in engaging in beneficial physical activity.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
.
