Boletín de la Asociación Médica de Puerto Rico
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Does Injection Site Matter? A Randomized Controlled Trial to Evaluate Different Entry Site Efficacy of Knee Intra-articular Injections.
Complaints of knee pain secondary to early osteoarthritis may account for up to 30% of visits to primary care physicians. Due to the proposed inflammatory changes in early osteoarthritis, intra-articular injections of corticosteroids (IACS) have been considered as an option for disease progression modification, pain control, and improvement of function. However, some studies have suggested poor accuracy rates of IA injections depending on the entry site chosen. It is therefore the aim of this study to evaluate the efficacy of IA knee corticosteroid injection in reducing pain and improving function in patients with early osteoarthritis and whether the low accuracy rates reported with the Anterolateral joint line injection site translate to worse functional and pain outcome measures as compared to Suprapatellar lateral injections. ⋯ We have therefore continued the use of palpation-guided intra-articular knee injections in an effort to reduce costs as compared to other injection modalities with positive results in our osteoarthritis patients.