The knee osteoarthritis or osteoarthritis is a common condition, affecting 30% of people aged 65 to 75 years. Source of chronic pain, it can be particularly disabling. In recent years, a treatment that could turn out to be revolutionary has been developing: the intra-articular injection of Plasma Rich in Platelets or PRP.
Formerly reserved for athletes, the injection of Plasma Rich in Platelets (PRP) has appeared in the therapeutic arsenal of rheumatologists to treat osteoarthritis of Mr. and Mrs. Everyone.
The PRP injection consists of introducing platelets from the blood of the patient himself into the painful joint . Rich in growth factors, this plasma concentrate has regenerative properties on damaged cartilage.
Growth factors are proteins that regulate the multiplication of cells according to the needs of the body. In osteoarthritis , they allow cell activation and thus repair damaged tissue.
Concretely, we will therefore take a blood test on the patient. This sample is then centrifuged in order to separate the red blood cells from the platelets (which contain the growth factors). The plasma thus concentrated is recovered and injected into the joint, under radiographic or ultrasound control, by the doctor.
The knee may be a bit sore the following week. It is possible to repeat the injection every 15 days for 1 to 2 months.
This platelet treatment is simple, natural and inexpensive. But is it effective in relieving knee osteoarthritis?
A recent study looked at this question. The effectiveness of PRP injection with prp tube in osteoarthritis of the knee has been compared with that of another treatment used in this pathology: intra-articular injections of hyaluronic acid (a substance with lubricating properties).
The selected patients had grade 2-3 osteoarthritis and received 3 injections every 4 weeks, either of PRP or of hyaluronic acid.
Thanks to MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging), very precise images of the knee joint are obtained, which makes it possible to classify osteoarthritis according to its severity, from grade 1 to grade 4 (the most severe disease). ).
Six months later, 48.3% of patients in the PRP group had an improvement in their knee osteoarthritis visible on MRI (improvement in the grade of osteoarthritis ) against only 8% in the hyaluronic acid group. Symptoms were also significantly better relieved in the group that received the PRP injections.
Good news for people with osteoarthritis of the knee !