Adding triamcinolone improves viscosupplementation: a randomized clinical trial.

Area of Science:

• Orthopedics
• Rheumatology
• Pharmacology

Background:

• Intraarticular corticosteroid injections are common for knee osteoarthritis, offering initial pain relief.
• Viscosupplementation is an alternative treatment with a delayed onset of action.
• Corticosteroids show greater short-term efficacy, while viscosupplementation offers longer-term pain reduction.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if adding triamcinolone to viscosupplementation improves early pain and function.
• To assess if combined therapy diminishes adverse effects compared to viscosupplementation alone.
• To evaluate the 6-month pain and functional outcomes of combined therapy versus viscosupplementation alone.

Main Methods:

• 104 patients with knee osteoarthritis were prospectively enrolled and randomized.
• Group VS received hylan GF-20 (viscosupplementation) alone.
• Group VS+T received hylan GF-20 plus triamcinolone hexacetonide.

Main Results:

• At Week 1, the triamcinolone combination group (VS+T) showed significantly lower WOMAC and VAS pain scores.
• No significant differences in adverse effects were observed between the groups.
• No differences in pain or function were found at Weeks 4, 12, and 24.

Conclusions:

• Triamcinolone hexacetonide addition enhances early (first-week) symptom and functional scores in viscosupplementation for knee osteoarthritis.
• The benefits of adding triamcinolone do not persist beyond the first week.
• The combination therapy does not appear to increase the incidence of adverse effects.