Effectiveness of Visual Needle Knife Release in Treating Knee Osteoarthritis: A Meta-analysis

To evaluate the clinical efficacy of visual needle knife release in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis.

Computerized literature searches were conducted in CNKI (China National Knowledge Infrastructure), Wanfang Medical Database, VIP Information, Chinese Medical Journal Network and PubMed. The search strategy combined subject terms and free words, including "visualization", "needle-knife", "needle-knife therapy", "knee osteoarthritis", and "KOA". Finally, randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of visual needle knife treatment for knee osteoarthritis that met the inclusion criteria were included for systematic review.

A total of 10 RCTs involving 739 patients were included in this study. The results showed that the clinical effective rate of the visual needle knife treatment group was significantly higher than that of the control group (OR = 6.00, 95% CI [2.87, 12.54], P < 0.001). In terms of WOMAC score, the treatment group was significantly lower than the control group (MD = -6.03, 95% CI [-8.79, -3.27], P = 0.001). Similarly, the VAS score of the treatment group was also lower than that of the control group (SMD = -0.72, 95% CI [-1.07, -0.37]). Additionally, the Lysholm score of the treatment group was higher than that of the control group (MD = 2.35, 95% CI [1.89, 2.82]). All the differences between the groups were statistically significant.

Compared with traditional blind needle knife, acupuncture, and intra-articular sodium hyaluronate injection, visual needle knife technique shows a higher clinical effective rate in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis. This technique is more effective in relieving knee pain and improving joint function, and is safer than traditional methods. Therefore, visual needle knife release is worthy of further promotion and application in clinical practice.