Table 2.
Details of clinical studies in knee lesions
| Study, Year | Type of study | Knees treated | Follow up | Lesion type | Key results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gharaibeh et al. (2017) | Level IV, retrospective case series | RFE: 840 | Up to 6 months | Most common site of chondral lesion: - Medial femoral condyle (27%) - Patella (21%) - Trochlea (9%) |
Postoperative complications: 2.2% Required reoperation: 2.7% Significant improvement in KOOS and WOMAC scores from preoperative to 129 days postoperative (p < 0.0001) |
| Owens et al. (2002) | Level I, RCT | RFE: 20 MD: 19 |
Up to 24 months | Isolated patellar chondral lesions (Outerbridge Grade II or III) | Fulkerson-Shea score: superior for radiofrequency over mechanical debridement at 24 months (p = 0.0006) |
| Spahn et al. (2008) | Level I, RCT | RFE: 30 MD: 30 |
Up to 12 months | Cartilage defect(s) of the medial femoral condyle (Outerbridge Grade III) | Significantly better KOOS (p < 0.001) and Tegner scores (p < 0.001) for RFE over MD at 12 months Significantly lower VAS pain score (p = 0.014) for RFE over MD at 12 months |
| Spahn et al.a (2010) | Level I, RCT | RFE: 25 MD: 15 |
Up to 48 months | Cartilage defect(s) of the medial femoral condyle (Outerbridge Grade III) | Significantly higher proportion of revisions for persistent knee problems occurred in the MD group than RFE group (4 vs 14; p < 0.01) Significantly better KOOS (p < 0.001) and Tegner scores (p = 0.005) for RFE over MD at 48 monthsb |
| Spahn et al.a (2016b) | Level I, RCT | RFE: 13 MD: 9 |
Up to 120 months | Cartilage defect(s) of the medial femoral condyle (Outerbridge Grade III) | Significantly longer mean time to revision for RFE group over MD group at up to 120 months (94.1 vs 62.5 months; p = 0.022) |
| Voloshin et al. (2007) | Level IV, retrospective case series | RFE: 193 | Not reported | Partial-thickness articular cartilage lesions (Outerbridge Grade I-IV) | Second-look follow-up arthroscopy of 25 lesions showed 12% with progressive deterioration, 32% with no change, 32% with partial filling of the defect, and 24% with complete filling with stable repair tissue |
Abbreviations: KOOS knee osteoarthritis outcome score, MD mechanical debridement, RCT randomized controlled trial, RFE radiofrequency energy, VAS visual analogue scale, WOMAC Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index
aFollow-up analyses of the initial 2008 analysis by Spahn et al. (2008)
bPatients who underwent revision not included in clinical outcomes analysis