Exploration of lifestyle interventions for individuals with knee osteoarthritis: A scoping review

Abstract

Background: Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is a primary global cause of disability, with lifestyle interventions such as exercise and weight management serving as key conservative strategies. However, the diversity of these interventions and their assessment measures lack synthesis.
Objectives: Our scoping review explored the range, characteristics and outcomes of lifestyle interventions for knee OA and identified the outcome measures used for assessment.
Method: Adhering to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews guidelines and the Arksey and O’Malley framework, data were extracted from 36 studies, including 29 randomised controlled trials, two cohorts, three quasi-experimental studies, one qualitative study and one feasibility trial.
Results: Across 4025 participants, interventions included physiotherapist-guided exercise, multicomponent programmes, digital eHealth platforms, aquatic training and dietary changes. While findings consistently showed improved physical function, reduced pain and enhanced quality of life, no single outcome measure was universally applied across all identified studies. Key barriers included low motivation, technical literacy and resource intensity.
Conclusion: Lifestyle interventions are diverse and effective for improving clinical outcomes in knee OA. The absence of a standardised outcome measure highlights significant heterogeneity in how intervention efficacy is captured in research.
Clinical Implications: These findings highlight the need for standardised, clinically meaningful outcome measures to improve comparability across studies and strengthen evidence synthesis. Greater consistency in how lifestyle interventions are evaluated will support translation into clinical practice and inform the design of future multicomponent programmes for individuals with knee OA.