FUNCTIONAL OUTCOME FOLLOWING ARTHROSCOPIC DEBRIDEMENT WITH MICROFRACTURE AND PLATELET RICH PLASMA INJECTION IN OSTEOARTHRITIS OF KNEE-A PROSPECTIVE STUDY

Abstract

Background: Surgical treatment for OA of the knee involves debridement, lavage, with microfracture to enhance chondral resurfacing by providing a suitable environment for tissue regeneration. Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is known to stimulate the proliferation of chondrocytes. Combining microfracture with PRP injections helps in promoting early clinical improvement, and this study aims to assess the functional outcomes when all three techniques are used simultaneously. Material and Methods: A prospective, observational and hospital-based conducted at R. L. Jalappa Hospital and Research Centre, SDUMC, Tamaka on patients with OA of the knee from November 2018 to November 2020. Clinical data is collected and evaluated with pre-procedure and post-procedure WOMAC and VAS scoring. Results: 74.29% had Kellegren-Lawrence grade III knee OA, and 25.71% had grade II knee OA. Patients are evaluated using WOMAC, VAS SCORE for levels of pain and knee function prior to the procedure, and after 1 month, 3 months and 6-month post-procedure. It is observed that 68.57% of the study population had good VAS outcome while 31.43% had a poor VAS outcome. WOMAC score, there is a statistically significant improvement (p < 0.001) with a decrease in the WOMAC score from pre-op 67.11 ± 8.73 to 50.14 ± 9.99 at 1 month, and 40.83 ± 7.8 at 3 months and further reduced to 31.66 ± 5.28 at 6 months. Conclusion: The study concludes that intra-articular PRP injection after debridement and microfracture has more benefit in pain relief and functional improvement, and it also prolongs the treatment efficacy of microfracture in patients with symptomatic knee OA.