Dextrose injections aid knee osteoarthritis pain

(HealthDay)—Intra-articular dextrose prolotherapy (DPT) injections are a safe and effective treatment for knee osteoarthritis, according to a study published in the May/June issue of the Annals of Family Medicine.

Regina Wing Shan Sit, M.B.B.S., D.C.H., from The Chinese University of Hong Kong, and colleagues randomly assigned 76 patients with knee osteoarthritis to DPT or normal saline injections at weeks 0, 4, 8, and 16. Outcomes were evaluated at baseline and at 16, 26, and 52 weeks.

The researchers found that the Western Ontario McMaster University Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) pain score at 52 weeks showed a difference-in-difference estimate of −10.34 points. There was a similar favorable effect on the difference-in-difference estimates for WOMAC function score, WOMAC composite score, visual analogue scale pain intensity score, and EuroQol-5D visual analogue scale score. There were no adverse events reported.

"The procedure is straightforward and safe; the adherence and satisfaction were high," the authors write.

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