Manual Therapy and Exercise Interventions for Musculoskeletal Conditions in Adults Aged 16-80 Years: A Systematic Review with a UK Healthcare Perspective

Abstract

Musculoskeletal (MSK) disease is a leading cause of disability worldwide and a major contributor to the increasing demand for healthcare in the UK. Physiotherapy is widely recommended in primary care, but its effectiveness varies depending on the treatment method and the stage of the disease. The aim of this review was to assess the effectiveness of physiotherapy treatment in adults with musculoskeletal (MSK) problems and explore its impact on the healthcare delivery system in the UK. A systematic review was performed following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines, with searches of various databases such as MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, PEDro, and Cochrane CENTRAL for Randomized controlled trials evaluating the effectiveness of physiotherapy in adults. The Cochrane RoB 2 tool was used to assess the risk of bias. Due to the heterogeneity of the studies, a descriptive synthesis was performed. The included studies mainly showed that physiotherapy methods, especially exercise-based and multidisciplinary methods, can improve pain and function compared to conventional treatment. There was evidence of varying degrees of improvement in terms of quality of life. No serious adverse events were reported. Physiotherapy is an effective non-pharmacological treatment for MSK conditions and supports NHS strategies that encourage early treatment uptake and self-management.