electrical stimulation

An 11-step stairway with a step height of 17 cm will be used. Participants will begin with both feet on the bottom landing, then ascend and descend the stairway as fast as possible, and finally stop with both feet back on the bottom landing while using a handrail support, if required. Time recording will be started when the participant is signalled to start and ended when the participant returns with both feet on the ground.

The participant will sit down at first and then stand up when given the signal to start. As fast as possible, the participant will walk 3 meters toward a cone on the floor, circle it, walk back 3 more meters toward a chair, and finally sat down. Timing begins on the signal to start and ends when the participant completely sits down with their back resting on the backrest of the chair.

In the 6MWT, the participants will walk as far as they could within 6 minutes. They will not be allowed to carry a watch or provided feedback during the trial. Although rest periods are allowed, time recording will continue. The participants will be provided encouragement at 1-minute intervals.

The mean knee pain during the stair climb test, TUG test, and 6MWT will be measured using the VAS. Participants will record their level of knee pain by drawing a vertical mark between the ends of a 10-cm horizontal line. The 0-cm end and the 10-cm end represented no pain and the most extreme pain, respectively.

The Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) was developed as an extension of the WOMAC Osteoarthritis Index with the purpose of evaluating short-term and long-term symptoms and function in subjects with knee injury and osteoarthritis. The KOOS holds five separately scored subscales: Pain, other Symptoms, Function in daily living (ADL), Function in Sport and Recreation (Sport/Rec), and knee-related Quality of Life (QOL).

Gait stride length is measured to assess walking ability, including muscle strength, balance, and flexibility of the lower limbs. The starting line is determined, and participants stand with the toes of both feet behind this line. They take 2 long steps (as long as possible) and then align both their feet. Subsequently, the length of the 2 steps from the starting line to the toes is measured.