Pilates After Total Knee Arthroplasty (TKA)
Sam’s world view
Each month we hear from Sam Wood - she summarises the most recent articles published in the Pilates industry.
A 2017 study at Hacettepe University in Turkey set out to determine whether adding Pilates exercises to standard exercises is more effective than standard exercises alone for patients who have had a unilateral total knee replacement. They hypothesized that the addition of Pilates-based exercises to develop stabilization would improve body balance and thereby increase the quality of life for these patients.
Forty-six volunteers between the ages of 55 and 85 who recently had a unilateral total knee replacement by the same surgeon using the same technique were randomly assigned to either a control group or a Pilates group. Both groups were given the same standard exercise program during their hospital stay. However, upon discharge, the control group was given a standard post-operative exercise program for TKA from the literature (Artz et al. 2015; Bade and Stevens-Lapsley 2011), whereas the Pilates group was given Pilates-based exercises in addition to the standard program. The Pilates protocol followed was developed by Levine, Kaplanek, and Jaffe (2009) in a study that was previously summarized in this book. Prior to beginning the Pilates program, the patients in this group were taught how to activate their transversus abdominis and multifidi using a pressure biofeedback unit and were instructed to follow Joseph Pilates’ original six principles: concentration, control, centering, flowing movement, precision, and breathing.
Clinical evaluations, sociodemographic data (age, height, body weight, BMI, duration of hospital stay), Berg Balance Scale scores, and subjective findings via Short Form-36 quality-of-life measurements were consistent among the groups on the day of discharge. However, six weeks later, the Pilates group scored significantly better in all of these variables. From the Short Form-36, the subparameter scores of physical function, physical role restriction, and physical component showed the most significant improvements. The significant increase in Berg Balance Scale scores of the Pilates group as compared to the control group is an important finding because balance after TKA has been reported to be correlated with quality of life (Schwartz et al. 2012). The results of this study support the conclusions of Levine, Kaplanek, and Jaffe’s previous reports that post-operative Pilates-based exercises are a viable adjunct therapy to achieve improved balance and quality of life following a TKA.
References
Karaman, A., I. Yuksel, G.I. Kinikli, and O. Caglar. 2017. “Do Pilates-Based Exercises Following Total Knee Arthroplasty Improve Postural Control and Quality of Life?” Physiotherapy Theory and Practice 33 (4): 289-295.
Samantha Wood, MPT, MBA, NPCT, RYT, is a licensed physical therapist, a National Pilates Certified Teacher (NPCT), and a Yoga Alliance–certified teacher. She created and teaches BASI’s Pilates for Injuries & Pathologies advanced education courses. Click here to view 2026 course dates and locations. Her new book, Pilates For Rehabilitation, 2nd edition will be released in December and is available for preorder now from Amazon.com.