Different manual therapy techniques and conservative therapy have been used separately for alleviation of pain and improvement of physical function in patients with knee osteoarthritis (KOA). However, no study has reported the effect of combination of these treatment modalities in the management of KOA. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of end-range mobilization added to conservative therapy versus conservative therapy alone on decrease of pain and improvement of functional status in KOA.

Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is a musculoskeletal condition affecting older people. It is characterized by pain and loss of physical function, which has a negative impact on patients' quality of life. The different international guidelines recommend several non-invasive treatment modalities for the management of KOA. Conservative therapy including land-based exercises, aquatic exercises, Transcutaneous Electro Neuro Stimulation (TENS) therapy and balneotherapy has been reported positively in the management of patients with KOA (1, 2). Manual therapy is also a preferred treatment modality with the aim of alleviation of pain, improvement of joint mobility and therefore the physical condition (1, 2). Out of manual therapy techniques, end-range mobilization is a well applied treatment technique in the management of different musculoskeletal conditions (3). Till date, the effect of end-range mobilization has not been investigated so far in knee OA.

Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of end-range mobilization added to conservative therapy versus conservative therapy alone on decrease of pain and improvement of functional status in KOA.

Inclusion Criteria:

• KOA according to the American College of Rheumatology
• categorization as End Of Range Problem based on Maitland's classification.
• at least half year existing and at least 3 pain scores measured with Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) during weight-bearing activities
• bilateral, moderate-to-severe symptomatic tibiofemoral knee OA with radiographic evidence
• at least 90 degree passive knee flexion range
• sufficient mental status

Exclusion Criteria:

• acute inflammation of the knee
• intraarticular injections within the last 3 months
• total knee replacement in the opposite side
• class II. obesity (body mass index, BMI>35kg/m2)
• severe degenerative lumbar spine disease (e.g. spondylolisthesis)
• systemic inflammatory arthritic or neurological condition
• physiotherapy and other balneotherapy attendance within 6 months
• contraindication for conservative and manual therapy
• unstable heart condition
• complex regional pain syndrome