Effectiveness of Herbal Poultices for Relieving Knee Pain in Patients with Osteoarthritis: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Introduction: Osteoarthritis is a very important health problem among those entering old age, leaving it unattended will lead to disabilities and balance problems. Herbal knee masks can reduce pain in knee joints, enabling patients to help themselves.

Objective: To study the effectiveness of herbal knee mask on the degree of pain and stiffness of the knee joint as well as the ability to use the knee joint and research knowledge about the prevention of osteoarthritis to improve the living quality of patients and their relatives and caregivers.

Methods: This study is a systematic review of literature and a synthesis of research findings on the efficacy of herbal knee masks for relieving knee pain in patients with osteoarthritis. The study followed the methodology suggested by the Joanna Briggs Institute as follows: 1. Defining a topic for the review; 2. Using PICOS principle where Population was patients with osteoarthritis, Intervention was herbal knee mask, Comparison was  patients with osteoarthritis using and not using herbal knee masks, Outcome was effects of using herbal knee masks in patients with osteoarthritis, and Study design was no limitation on research designs; 3. Selection of research articles by using the inclusion and exclusion criteria;  4. Data extraction; and 5. Quality assessment of research articles.

Research results: From the review of all articles, there were 13 selected studies that correlated with the effectiveness of herbal knee poultices for relieving knee pain in patients with osteoarthritis. Herbal knee masks were found to effectively relieve knee pain before using them, they had severe knee pain. After using the herbal knee wrap, the severity of osteoarthritis reduced and the degree of pain also reduced. Joint stiffness reduced. Their knowledge and prevention of osteoarthritis symptoms increased.

Recommendations: There are several herbal knee mask recipes that provide different treatment results and can be used in combination with reflexology. Therefore, herbal knee wraps should be encouraged as an alternative to treat patients with osteoarthritis pain.