Rehabilitation after knee prosthesis: how telerehabilitation with Rehub® improves strength, adherence and clinical outcomes

Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is a surgical intervention widely used to treat severe cases of osteoarthritis and other degenerative knee joint diseases. While surgery has proven to be highly effective in terms of pain reduction and mobility improvement, the real challenge begins after discharge: the rehabilitation phase. 

This stage is decisive in ensuring that the surgical benefits result in a full and sustained functional recovery over time.

In this sense, the role of postoperative physiotherapy is indisputable. However, traditional face-to-face rehabilitation models have certain limitations, especially in patients with difficulty commuting or who do not have easy access to specialized services.. 

Faced with this reality, telerehabilitation has emerged as a viable and promising alternative.. 

Among the most innovative and scientifically evaluated platforms in this field is REHUB®, a digital rehabilitation system that allows therapeutic exercises from home, under the remote control of a physical therapist.

A clinical study carried out in the Barcelona Clinic Hospital, one of the reference hospital centers in Europe, has shown that REHUB® is not only safe and effective, but also significantly improves the strength of the quadriceps and adherence to treatment in patients who have received a total knee prosthesis. 

This finding marks a turning point in the way we conceive and organize rehabilitation after knee prosthesis.

 

The critical importance of rehabilitation after a knee prosthesis

Knee arthroplasty surgery represents a definitive solution for many patients with advanced osteoarthritis, joint deformities, or traumatic sequelae.. 

However, the success of this operation largely depends on the subsequent rehabilitation process.. 

Without adequate physical therapy, even a perfectly implanted prosthesis can result in suboptimal function, joint stiffness, persistent muscle weakness or even failures in implant integration.

The goal of rehabilitation is to recover the range of movement of the joint, improve muscle strength —especially the quadriceps femoris, essential muscle for stability and gait—, and restore the global functionality of the patient in their daily life. 

Achieving these objectives requires a structured program, adapted to the rate of recovery of each individual and with a constant professional guidance.

However, in daily clinical practice, multiple factors make access, constancy and effectiveness of rehabilitation treatment difficult.. 

These obstacles range from physical barriers (postoperative pain, limited mobility, difficulty in transportation) to logistical or economic limitations. It is precisely at this point where the Telerehabilitation It offers concrete and effective solutions.

 

Telerehabilitation: A clinical alternative to traditional models

The Telerehabilitation It consists of the use of digital technologies to carry out remote physiotherapy programs. 

This implies that the patient can perform their exercises from home, with the support of a platform that guides, records and monitors each movement, and with the remote supervision of the health professional.

Far from being a simple technological adaptation, the Telerehabilitation It proposes a new therapeutic approach focused on the patient, which prioritizes its comfort, its autonomy and its motivation. 

Current platforms allow you to customize the exercise plan, offer real-time feedback, and even analyze physical performance metrics with great precision.

This model is not intended to replace face-to-face care, but to complement it, making care resources more efficiently used. 

In particular, in rehabilitation after knee prosthesis, where the constancy and quality of the exercises are decisive, the Telerehabilitation can make a significant difference in the results.

 

Rehub®: Advanced technology applied to functional recovery

Rehub® is a telerehabilitation platform developed specifically for the treatment of musculoskeletal pathologies. 

Its operation is based on the integration of an interactive platform and an inertial sensor that is placed on the affected limb, usually on the operated leg. 

This sensor registers key biomechanical parameters such as the range of motion (ROM), the speed and the quality of the exercise, transmitting this data to the platform in real time.

From the patient’s point of view, the platform offers a clear and intuitive interface, where the assigned exercises are displayed, with detailed instructions and demonstrative videos.. 

The tool guides the user step by step, corrects execution errors, and provides performance indicators. 

From the physiotherapist’s point of view, Rehub® offers a complete control panel for adjustments, tracking evolution and planning new sessions, based on objective data and not only on the patient’s sensations.

This evidence-based approach allows for rigorous clinical control without the need for the patient to go to the rehabilitation center physically, something especially valuable during the first weeks of the postoperative period, when mobility is still limited.

 

Clinical study at the Hospital Clínic de Barcelona: Results and conclusions

The study carried out by the Hospital Clínic de Barcelona team aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the use of REHUB® during the rehabilitation process of patients operated on with a total knee prosthesis.. 

The clinical trial design included a group of patients who used the platform at their homes and a control group that followed a conventional rehabilitation protocol.

The results were conclusive. 

First, it was found that the use of REHUB® is completely safe, without generating adverse effects or complications associated with the use of the sensor or carrying out the proposed exercises.. 

Second, patients who used REHUB® showed a Significant improvement in the strength of the quadriceps, compared to the control group. This variable is of vital importance, since the quadriceps is the main stabilizer of the knee and its correct activation is essential to resume normal walking and prevent falls.

In addition, a Greater adherence to the rehabilitation program Among the patients of the REHUB® group, which shows that the comfort, the digital guide and the motivation offered by the platform have a positive influence on therapeutic compliance. 

This high adherence is one of the keys to clinical success in the medium and long term, since many postoperative functional complications are related to the lack of adequate follow-up of the exercises.

 

Rehub® Clinical Advantages in Rehabilitation After a Knee Prosthesis

The use of a tool such as REHUB® in the postoperative context of total knee arthroplasty offers concrete and measurable clinical advantages:

1. Effective muscle strengthening: The possibility of monitoring the execution of the exercises in real time guarantees that they are carried out correctly, allowing a progressive and safe activation of the quadriceps and other muscle groups involved.
2. Accessibility and comfort: The patient can carry out his rehabilitation in the environment of his home, without the limitations of transportation or the rigid hours of a medical center.
3. Reduction of indirect costs: By minimizing movements and optimizing face-to-face sessions, costs are reduced for both the health system and the patient.
4. Data-based clinical control: The physiotherapist accesses objective data that allow the treatment to be adjusted according to the real evolution of the patient, and not only of his subjective sensations.
5. Patient empowerment: Being an active participant in their recovery, the patient develops greater body awareness, therapeutic responsibility and motivation, which translates into better functional results.

 

A new healthcare model: Hybrid rehabilitation

The approach that Rehub® raises does not replace professional intervention, but rather amplifies it. 

Hybrid rehabilitation—a combination of strategic face-to-face sessions and digitally supervised homework—is presented as a more efficient, personalized and sustainable care model.

This model not only benefits the patient, but also the professionals, who can manage more cases simultaneously, carry out a more precise follow-up and dedicate the face-to-face time to interventions of greater complexity or fine adjustment.

 

Conclusion

The Rehabilitation after knee prosthesis It is a fundamental phase that determines the functional success of the surgery. The introduction of tools such as Rehub® allows this recovery to be carried out more efficiently, personalized and accessible, without giving up clinical control or quality of care.

The study of the Hospital Clínic de Barcelona provides solid evidence on the benefits of telerehabilitation in this context: safety, efficacy, improvement of muscle strength, increased adherence and greater patient empowerment. 

These types of solutions represent not only an innovative option, but also a necessity to face the current and future challenges of rehabilitation.