The impact of digital healthcare systems on pain and body function in patients with knee joint pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis

The digital healthcare (DH) system has recently emerged as an advanced rehabilitation approach that promotes rehabilitation training based on virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). The purpose of this meta-analysis study is to review and assess the impact of DH systems on pain and physical function among patients diagnosed with knee joint pain. Between January 2003 and September 2023, studies that met the listed inclusion criteria were gathered from Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science, and EBSCO databases. The analysis of standardized mean difference (SMD) was carried out with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) (PROSPERO registration number: CRD42023462538). Eight research papers were selected, which collectively involved 194 males and 279 females. The meta-analysis outcomes revealed that DH intervention significantly improved balance (SMD, 0.41 [0.12, 0.69], p