NIDILRR ARRT: Quantitative Assessment of Knee Pain and Proprioception in Tibial Rotation in Individuals with Knee Osteoarthritis 1053

Monday, October 27, 2025

5:05 PM - 5:15 PM

Location: ROOM: Marquette Room >>> DIRECTIONS: Third Floor >>> From the Main Elevator Bank, proceed right. Marquette is located directly in front beyond the Marquette Foyer.

Presenting Author(s)

Zongpan Li

Postdoctoral Fellow
University of Maryland, Baltimore
BALTIMORE, MD, United States

Non-presenting Author(s)

Raziyeh Baghi

Postdoctoral Fellow
University of Maryland, Baltimore
BALTIMORE, MD, United States
GO

Giovanni Oppizzi

PhD candidate
University of Maryland, College Park
BALTIMORE, Maryland, United States
PB

Peter Bowman

Assistant Professor
University of Maryland, Baltimore
BALTIMORE, Maryland, United States
FH

Frank Henn

Associate Professor
University of Maryland, Baltimore
BALTIMORE, Maryland, United States
LZ

Li-Qun Zhang, PhD

Professor
University of Maryland, Baltimore
BALTIMORE, Maryland, United States

This study introduces a robot-aided device to measure knee pain and proprioception during tibial rotation quantitatively in individuals with knee osteoarthritis (OA). Lower pain threshold angle (PTA) in tibial internal rotation (IR), indicative of increased pain sensitivity, is associated with worse KOOS/WOMAC scores. Greater pain sensitivity in IR than external rotation (ER) may be related to medial knee OA. Knee OA patients exhibit reduced tibial rotation, possibly as a compensatory adaptation to mitigate mechanical stimuli on surrounding tissues that could otherwise provoke knee pain. Thus, the PTA at which knee pain is sensed may reflect that the surrounding tissues have received mechanical stimuli sufficient to exceed the nociceptive threshold. Modifying foot progression angles (corresponding to tibial rotation) has been used as a gait retraining technique for knee OA. Hence, the PTA could help pinpoint the optimal angles to be modified for better pain reduction. Additionally, patients with medial knee OA exhibit poorer proprioception in the ER. This may provide a scientific basis for developing individualized neuromuscular training to improve knee control and pain reduction. Therefore, this study introduces a robot-assisted method for measuring knee pain and proprioception, potentially facilitating the precise rehabilitation of knee OA.

Learning Objectives:

Upon completion, participant will be able to describe that the smaller pain threshold angle in tibial rotation reflects worse clinical symptoms in individuals with medial compartment knee osteoarthritis.
Upon completion, participant will be able to describe that knee pain is more sensitive in internal than in external tibial rotation, which may be related to medial knee osteoarthritis.
Upon completion, participant will be able to describe that individuals with medial compartment knee osteoarthritis exhibit poorer proprioception in external tibial rotation.
Upon completion, participant will be able to demonstrate the feasibility of using a robot-assisted device to quantitatively evaluate knee pain and proprioception in tibial rotation, which may enhance precise rehabilitation of knee osteoarthritis.