Knee Osteoarthritis May be Treated With Nerve Block

Pain in patients with knee osteoarthritis can be relieved by the anesthetics that block nerves around their knees as per a clinical trial published by Wiley in Arthritis & Rheumatology. In the trial, 59 patients were randomized to receive a nerve block or a placebo injection. At baseline and weeks 2, 4, 8, and 12, participants recorded their pain on a scale of 0 to 10.

Benefits of Nerve Block

Patients who received a nerve block reported improvement in pain scores at 2, 4, 8, and 12 weeks, compared with baseline, but with diminishing effects over time. Scores for nerve block versus placebo at baseline, weeks 2, 4, 8, and 12 were: 6.2 versus 5.3, 2.7 versus 4.7, 3.2 versus 5.1, 3.9 versus 4.9, and 4.6 versus 5.1, respectively.

Most patients who received the blocks felt they had improved or greatly improved from baseline during the follow-up period.

“This study demonstrates that genicular nerve block is an effective short-term therapy for pain management in people with knee osteoarthritis,” said corresponding author Ernst M. Shanahan, BMBS, MPH, MHPE, PhD, FAFOEM, FRACP, of Flinders University, in Australia. “We think it may be a useful treatment option for this group of people, in particular those waiting for, or wishing to defer surgery.”

Source-Eurekalert