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Role of Triple Injection Platelet-Rich Plasma for Osteoarthritis Knees: A 2 Years Follow-Up Study

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Indian Journal of Orthopaedics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

To assess the clinical outcomes of intra-articular Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection in knee osteoarthritis (OA) at 2 year follow-up.

Methods

This was a prospective interventional study. 68 cases (105 knees) with Kellgren-Lawrence (KL) grades I, II and III knee OA received 3 intra-articular injections of PRP 1 month apart. The cases were followed up for 2-years. Outcomes were measured using Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index (WOMAC) score and Visual analog scale (VAS) scores.

Results

The mean age was 51.7 years. 18 knees had KL grade I, 55 had grade II and 32 had grade III OA. The mean pre-treatment VAS score decreased significantly at 1 year (mean difference − 5.3, p = 0.003) and 2 year follow-up (mean difference − 6, p = 0.007). The mean pre-treatment WOMAC score decreased significantly at 1 year (mean difference − 45.9, p = 0.011) and at 2 year (mean difference − 52.4, p = 0.009). The WOMAC and VAS scores improved significantly from baseline to final follow-up across all KL grades (p = 0.001 and 0.001, 0.009 and 0.007, 0.021 and 0.017 for WOMAC and VAS across KL grade I, II and III, respectively). There was no significant differences in WOMAC and VAS scores between three KL grades at final follow-up (p = 0.17 and 0.09, respectively), although the baseline scores had significant difference (p = 0.001 for both VAS and WOMAC) with worse scores in higher KL grades. The variables like age, sex, BMI, KL grade, baseline VAS and baseline WOMAC did not predict the final VAS and WOMAC scores.

Conclusion

Triple injection of intra-articular PRP given one month apart significantly relieves the symptoms of knee OA till 2 years in KL grade I, II and III. The improvement in symptoms at 2-year follow-up did not differ across different KL grades.

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Funding

No funding was received for this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Teerthankar Mahaveer University, 4th floor, Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, 244001, India

    Najmul Huda, Mir Shahid ul Islam, Sandeep Bishnoi, Hemant Kumar, Shubham Aggarwal & Aijaz Ahmad Ganai

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  1. Najmul Huda
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  2. Mir Shahid ul Islam
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  3. Sandeep Bishnoi
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  4. Hemant Kumar
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  5. Shubham Aggarwal
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  6. Aijaz Ahmad Ganai
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Correspondence to Mir Shahid ul Islam.

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Ethical approval was obtained from the institutional ethics and research committee. The participants in study were humans.

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Huda, N., Islam, M.S.u., Bishnoi, S. et al. Role of Triple Injection Platelet-Rich Plasma for Osteoarthritis Knees: A 2 Years Follow-Up Study. JOIO 56, 249–255 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43465-021-00459-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s43465-021-00459-6

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