Evaluation on curative effects of isokinetic muscle strength training for improving muscle function in patients with knee osteoarthritis: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) refers to a chronic deteriorating disease distinguished by degeneration of joint cartilage. Many clinical studies have demonstrated that isokinetic muscle strength training can improve muscle function in patients with KOA. However, although such studies deduce an excellent effect, the results remain controversial. Therefore, the present systematic review seeks to explore the curative effects of isokinetic muscle strength training to establish if it can improve muscle function in patients experiencing KOA. METHODS: This review will entail a systematic review and a comprehensive examination to establish all randomized controlled studies covering curative effects of isokinetic muscle strength training to improve muscle function in patients with KOA. We will obtain data from PubMed, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and WanFang databases from inception to September 2021. In addition, the study will employ the criterion postulated by Cochrane to ascertain a quality evaluation and risk assessment of the studies included for analysis. Also, we will employ relative risk, mean differences, and standardized mean differences with 95% confidence intervals to estimate the effective measures. Also, we will employ Cochran Q test and I(2) statics to assess heterogeneity among the 2 studies. RESULTS: Overall, this study anticipates providing accurate results and balanced inferences on curative effects of isokinetic muscle strength training for improving muscle function in patients with KOA. CONCLUSION: The study's inferences will offer evidence to decide whether isokinetic muscle strength training is an effective measure for improving muscle function in patients with KOA.