From the Johns Hopkins Health Alerts:
Successful joint replacement, especially of the knee, requires a considerable investment of time and energy in rehabilitation. According to a new study published in Arthritis and Rheumatism (volume 61, page 174), a type of physical therapy called progressive strengthening can help people regain strength and function after knee replacement surgery.
The study included 241 people who had undergone knee replacement. Three to four weeks after surgery, 200 of these patients were randomly assigned to progressive rehabilitation with either electrical stimulation or no electrical stimulation. Progressive rehabilitation comprised six weeks of therapy two to three times per week, with gradually increasing amounts of weight and numbers of repetitions. Electrical stimulation involved placing electrodes on the thigh muscle and applying a current. A group of 41 patients who were unable to attend the progressive rehabilitation facility received standard physical therapy.
A year after surgery, people in the progressive rehabilitation group had better quadriceps strength and day-to-day leg function than people who received standard rehabilitation. There was no difference between patients who did and did not receive electrical stimulation.
If you are planning to have knee replacement surgery, ask your surgeon to refer you to a rehabilitation program that focuses on strengthening the quadriceps by increasing the amount of resistance.