Study: Knee OA patients fare no better after arthroscopic partial meniscectomy than sham surgery

Researchers from Finland found no significant difference in outcomes for patients with knee osteoarthritis following arthroscopic partial meniscectomy or sham surgery, according to a recently published study.

“In this trial involving patients without knee osteoarthritis but with symptoms of a degenerative medial meniscus tear, the outcomes after arthroscopic partial meniscectomy were no better than those after a sham surgical procedure,” Raine Sihvonen, MD, and colleagues wrote in the abstract.

Sihvonen and colleagues conducted a multicenter, randomized, double-blinded sham-controlled trial in 146 patients who were scheduled for either an arthroscopic partial meniscectomy or sham surgery, according to the abstract. The researchers rated each patient 12 months postoperatively using the Lysholm score and Western Ontario Meniscal Evaluation Tool (WOMET).

They found no significant difference in Lysholm or WOMET scores between baseline and 12 months after surgery in either group, according to the abstract. In addition, 2 patients in the partial meniscectomy group and 5 patients in the sham surgery group required revision surgery and 1 patient in the partial meniscectomy group experienced an adverse event; however, these results were not significant.

Disclosure: This study was supported by grants from Sigrid Juselius Foundation, the Competitive Research Fund of Pirkanmaa Hospital District, and the Academy of Finland.