Treatment of knee osteoarthritis with autologous platelet-rich plasma

(Baonghean.vn) - Knee osteoarthritis is the second leading cause of disability in the elderly after cardiovascular disease. However, current medical methods have not achieved the treatment goal. Treatment of knee osteoarthritis with autologous platelet-rich plasma is a promising new therapy.

According to statistics in 10 years (1991-2000), in Vietnam, the rate of inpatients treated at the musculoskeletal department of Bach Mai hospital, osteoarthritis ranked third (4.66%) in the group of diseases with joint damage. In osteoarthritis, knee osteoarthritis accounted for 56.5%.

Knee osteoarthritis affects the most motor function. Severe knee osteoarthritis is the cause of disability for many patients, resulting in high costs for families and society.

Treatment of osteoarthritis with autologous platelet-rich plasma at the General Clinic - Vinh Medical University. Photo: Luong Mai.

The treatment of osteoarthritis with autologous platelet-rich plasma applied by the Vinh Medical University Clinic has initially shown many positive signs. This is a new, effective technique, performed on degenerative joints in stages 2 and 3 according to the X-ray classification of Kellgren and Lawrence. In fact, 50 patients over 40 years old with a total of 220 joints were surveyed. All patients, 220 degenerative knee joints were injected with platelet-rich plasma using the New-PRP Pro Kit preparation method. Each joint was injected once a week for 3 weeks/3 consecutive injections.

Current medical treatments for knee osteoarthritis mainly aim at two goals: pain relief and improvement of joint mobility, which means that the symptoms of the disease are still treated but have not yet reached the goal of improving the quality of articular cartilage or stopping the degeneration process. In the past few years, many studies have shown that autologous platelet-rich plasma injected directly into the joint is a promising therapy in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis.

Associate Professor - Doctor Cao Truong Sinh - Director of the General Clinic - Vinh Medical University is interested in the treatment of osteoarthritis for patients. Photo: Luong Mai

Patients with severe knee osteoarthritis often have symptoms such as pain and discomfort at night when resting or sleeping, which is rare in mild knee osteoarthritis. At 1 month and 3 months after treatment, the rate of joint pain and discomfort at night gradually decreased, and after 6 months, only 3 joints were painful when moving and 1 joint was painful when not moving. New medical research shows that after 6 months of treatment, in the PRP treatment group, 48 joints (82.8%) had mechanical pain (the remaining 17.2% of joints were painless, and there were no joints with inflammatory pain).

Pain when walking and pain when climbing stairs are also common symptoms of knee osteoarthritis. Symptoms of pain when walking and climbing stairs improved insignificantly at 1 and 2 months after treatment. However, at 6 months, the pain rate was 38.1% pain when walking and 42.8% pain when climbing stairs. Research by musculoskeletal expert at Bach Mai Hospital - Doctor Bui Hai Binh showed that symptoms of pain when walking and pain when climbing stairs were little improved after PRP injection.

Consultation on treatment topics for patients at the multidisciplinary clinic - Vinh Medical University. Photo: Luong Mai

Signs of joint rusting are common in osteoarthritis with symptoms of stiffness and difficulty in moving the joint after a period of joint immobilization. The cause is due to damage to the articular cartilage, decreased viscosity of synovial fluid, inflammatory reaction of the joint capsule, synovial membrane, and degeneration of soft tissue around the joint. According to our research results, before treatment, 71.4% of joints had signs of joint rusting, of which the time under 15 minutes accounted for 54.1% and over 15 minutes 24.3%. After treatment with PRP therapy for 1 month and 3 months, the rate of signs of joint rusting gradually decreased, after 6 months the rate of joint rusting under 15 minutes was 23.8%, over 15 minutes was 4.8%.

Since it is an autologous blood collection method, there is no allergic reaction. The results after the first injection at 1 month, 3 months and 6 months, the patient's pain level according to the VAS scale decreased significantly. The ability to move was measured by the WOMAC scale such as walking, joint movements were easier. Patients felt more comfortable when moving their joints. Over 50 patients and 220 joints, no complications.

Treatment of knee osteoarthritis with platelet-rich plasma is effective in patients with osteoarthritis, reducing pain, increasing patient mobility as shown by improvement in VAS and WOMAC scores and low complication rate. It is necessary to widely deploy to treat knee osteoarthritis in patients.

Associate Professor, Dr. Cao Truong Sinh