Experimental treatment eases knee arthritis pain without surgery or pills

Researchers are testing low-dose radiation to treat the painful symptoms of osteoarthritis in the knee.The study, published by researchers in Korea and presented at the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) annual meeting in September, suggests that a single course of radiation can be a “safe and effective” treatment option.Knee osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease causing pain, swelling and stiffness in the knees that worsens over time.The randomized clinical trial enrolled 114 patients with moderate-to-mild knee osteoarthritis who were each assigned a very low dose of radiation, a low dose or a placebo.The only other pain relief used during the study was acetaminophen.The participants went through six sessions as researchers assessed “meaningful improvement” in at least two of the following markers — pain, physical function and overall assessment of condition.The patients also completed a questionnaire to report pain, stiffness and function.None of them recorded any treatment-related side effects.After four months of treatment, 70% of the low-dose participants met the criteria, compared to 42% in the placebo.

Those in the very low-dose group saw a 58.3% improvement.These findings suggest the low-dose regimen “drove relief beyond placebo effects,” experts noted in a press release.In the low-dose group, 56.8% recorded meaningful improvements in pain, stiffness and physical function scores, compared to 30.6% in placebo.The study concluded that low-dose radiation led to significant reductions in pain and improved function after four months, a “small fraction” of what is typically used to treat cancer.Dr.Byoung Hyuck Kim, principal investigator on the trial and an assistant professor of radiation oncology at Seoul National University College of Medicine, Boramae Medical Center, noted that people with painful knee osteoarthritis “often face a difficult choice” between the risk of side effects from pain medications and the...

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Publisher: New York Post

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