ABSTRACT
Background: Osteoarthritis (OA) was known as one of the most common degenerative joint diseases, which impeded the quality of life in patients through pain, stiffness, and low mobility. Its treatment covered gradation of treatment options including conservative to radical surgeries, depending on the extent of the symptoms and the progression of the illnesses. A thorough review of the surgical and non-surgical treatment options had been necessary in the optimization of functional data and improvement of patient satisfaction.
Objective: The article set out to test and compare the surgical options and non-surgical measures of treatment of osteoarthritis in regard to pain relief, improvement in functionality and quality of life by the patient.
Methods: This research had been carried at PUMHS Nawabshah during the time of June 2024 in May 2025. Eighty participants with diagnosed osteoarthritis, due to clinical tests and radiological confirmation of diagnosis, had been recruited. Patients had been divided into two groups: surgical group, people who had undergone total joint replacement or arthroscopic processes, and non-surgical group treated by physical therapy, pharmacological agents, and lifestyle changing procedures. The survey was based on the structured questionnaires, clinical analysis, and the functioning scoring schemes and compared the results after the 12-month follow-up observation.
Results: The results showed that the patients assigned on the surgical group had recorded a significant improvement on the pain reduction and functional mobility than the non-surgical group (p < 0.05). Non surgical care had however been more successful in the early stages of OA and this had provided pain control and long term stabilization of functions without the risks of surgery. The satisfaction scores had been greater in the surgical group in the patients experiencing advanced OA whereas in the non-surgical group there had been less complications and quick short term recovery.
Conclusion: The research found out that, surgical as well as non-surgical treatments that were used have been significant in treating osteoarthritis. The surgical treatment was more useful in more progressive cases in which functional impairment was high and the non-surgical methods were effective in the less progressive cases and were performed to delay surgery. The restorative process based on stage-specific and patient-centered approach was suggested to produce the best results.
Keywords: Osteoarthritis, surgical management, non-surgical management, joint replacement, conservative therapy, functional outcomes.