• Posted December 3, 2024

Artery Procedure May Offer Surgery-Free Way to Ease Knee Arthritis

Blocking blood flow to the site of knee arthritis can reduce pain and potentially prevent the need for knee replacement surgery, a new study says.

The procedure, called genicular artery embolization (GAE), improved patients’ quality of life by 87% and their pain by 71% at a one-year follow-up, researchers report.

“Our study found that GAE can effectively reduce knee pain and improve quality of life early after the treatment, with these benefits being maintained over the long term, especially for people who haven’t had success with other treatments like physical therapy or pain medications,” said lead researcher Dr. Florian Nima Fleckenstein, an interventional radiologist at Charité – University Hospital Berlin in Germany.

The genicular arteries are six leg arteries that meet to form a network around the knee joint, researchers said in background notes. These arteries are altered in patients with knee arthritis.

Researchers reasoned that blocking blood flow from these arteries at the site of knee pain could help reduce inflammation, continual wear down of cartilage and the growth of new nerves that increase pain sensation.

For the study, researchers performed GAE on more than 400 people ages 40 to 90 with moderate to severe knee arthritis that hadn’t responded to other treatments.

The procedure involves injecting small particles into specific blood vessels to block blood flow, researchers said.

Results showed that the procedure was particularly effective in the early stages of knee arthritis.

The findings will be presented Tuesday at the Radiological Society of North America annual meeting in Chicago. Such research should be considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.

“This could potentially offer a new lease on life for many patients who suffer from debilitating pain and mobility issues caused by osteoarthritis,” Fleckenstein said in a meeting news release. “GAE has the potential to reduce the need for more invasive surgeries, lower health care costs and significantly improve the quality of life for countless individuals suffering from knee osteoarthritis."

More information

The American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons has more on knee arthritis.

SOURCE: Radiological Society of North America, news release, Dec. 3, 2024