Abstract: Background: Osteoarthritis (OA) knee is one of the most prevalent musculoskeletal disorders in elderly population. It has got various treatment options but most are unsatisfactory. PRR (Platelet rich plasma) injection is a relatively new procedure. Following injection activated platelets secrete growth factors (platelet derived growth factor, epidermal growth factor). These growth factors reduce inflammation, cartilage degradation and promote chondrocyte proliferation.
Aim and Objectives: To compare the efficacies of treatment with PRP injection and conservative treatment with NSAIDS and exercise in OA knee.
Materials and Methods: This was a observational study in which comparisons of different outcomes were made on the efficacies of the treatments with PRP injection and compared to conservative treatment with NSAIDS and exercise in OA knee. The study was conducted in the Department of Orthopaedics in Ramkrishna Mission Seva Pratishthan. A total number of 60 patients with power 80% were randomly selected from the patients with OA attended OPD during the period from September 2017 to September 2019. The patients were divided into two groups of 30 patients in each group. The patients of the one group were treated with intra-articular PRP injection and the patients of another group were treated conservatively with NSAIDS and exercise. After the completion of treatments the patients were followed-up for 6 months and the outcomes of the treatments were assessed by WOMAC (The Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index) knee assessment scoring system.
Results: At 6 month the completion of treatments it was found that both clinical and functional improvements of the patients were significantly better than the initiation of treatments (p<0.0001). However, the improvements of the patients treated with PRP injection were significantly better than the patients treated conservatively with NSAIDS and exercise (p<0.001).
Conclusion: From the results of the study it may be concluded that PRP injection is better than conservative treatment with NSAIDS and exercise to treat OA knee.
