Multimodal Telerehabilitation Versus Face-to-Face Care for Adults With Hemophilia and Chronic Pain

Overview

Hemophilia is an inherited bleeding disorder that is commonly associated with chronic joint pain, reduced physical function, and decreased quality of life. Pain science education combined with exercise therapy has shown beneficial effects in people with chronic musculoskeletal pain; however, its effectiveness in people with hemophilia remains largely unknown. Telerehabilitation may improve access to rehabilitation by reducing geographical and transportation barriers, but its effectiveness compared with face-to-face delivery has not been established in this population. This randomized controlled non-inferiority trial will compare a 6-week multimodal telerehabilitation program consisting of pain science education and therapeutic exercise with an equivalent face-to-face program in adults with hemophilia and chronic pain. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of the two interventions. Clinical outcomes will be assessed before and after the intervention by an assessor blinded to group allocation. The study aims to determine whether telerehabilitation provides clinical outcomes that are not inferior to those achieved with conventional face-to-face rehabilitation.

Chronic pain affects nearly half of adults with hemophilia and is associated with impaired physical function, kinesiophobia, reduced self-efficacy, and poorer quality of life. Recurrent joint bleeding and hemophilic arthropathy contribute to persistent pain and disability, highlighting the need for accessible and effective rehabilitation strategies. Pain science education (PSE) is an educational intervention designed to improve understanding of the biological and psychosocial mechanisms underlying persistent pain, reduce pain-related threat, and promote adaptive health behaviors. When combined with exercise therapy, PSE has demonstrated beneficial effects in individuals with chronic musculoskeletal disorders. However, evidence supporting its use in people with hemophilia is scarce. Telerehabilitation has emerged as a promising strategy to improve access to rehabilitation services by reducing travel burden and geographical barriers while maintaining treatment adherence. Although previous studies suggest that telerehabilitation may provide outcomes comparable to conventional rehabilitation in several musculoskeletal conditions, no randomized controlled trial has compared multimodal pain science education plus exercise delivered by telerehabilitation with an equivalent face-to-face program in adults with hemophilia and chronic pain. This study is a single-center, randomized, assessor-blinded, parallel-group non-inferiority trial. Participants will be randomly allocated (1:1) to receive either a 6-week telerehabilitation program or an equivalent face-to-face program. Both groups will receive the same educational content and exercise protocol, differing only in the mode of delivery. The primary objective is to determine whether multimodal telerehabilitation is non-inferior to face-to-face rehabilitation in reducing pain intensity and improving pain sensitivity. Secondary objectives include evaluating changes in kinesiophobia, self-efficacy, joint health, functional performance, and patient-perceived improvement. The results of this trial will provide evidence regarding the effectiveness of multimodal telerehabilitation for adults with hemophilia and may support the implementation of accessible rehabilitation models in clinical practice.