The aim of our study was to assess the effect of the frequency of home exercise program (HEP) performance on pain [10-point visual analog scale (VAS)] in patients with osteoarthritis of the spine or knee after more than 6 months discharge from physical therapy (PT). We performed a retrospective chart review of 48 adult patients with a clinical diagnosis of knee or spine osteoarthritis and had been discharged from PT of the spine or the knee for at least 6 months with provision of HEP from a physical therapist. Adult patients who were younger than 50 years of age, taking more than one medication to control pain, participating in worker's compensation, or had a history of drug abuse were excluded from the study. We recorded patient demographics, pain level (10-point VAS scale), and the number of days that a HEP was performed per week. The mean VAS score of patients who performed 0 days of HEP per week was 6.90. The mean VAS score of patients who performed HEP 1-3 times per week was 6.36. The mean VAS score of patients who performed HEP 4-7 times per week was 5.00. Single-factor analysis of variance analysis indicated a P-value of less than 0.01. Post-hoc comparison of the mean VAS using Fisher's least significant difference test showed a significant difference between the mean VAS score of 4-7 days per week of HEP versus 0 days per week (P less than 0.01) and 1-3 days per week (P less than 0.01) of HEP. There was no significant difference in the mean VAS score between 0 days of HEP and 1-3 days of HEP (P greater than 0.05). Patients who performed 4-7 days per week of HEP had statistically significant lower mean VAS scores than patients who performed 0 days per week of HEP and 1-3 days per week of HEP. Therefore, after 6 months of discharge from PT, patients should be encouraged to perform at least 4 days of HEP per week. (Contains 1 table.)