If you suffer from chronic, painful knee osteoarthritis and have not found relief from conservative treatments, you may think that a knee replacement is your only option. But what if there was a way to delay or avoid surgery and still improve your quality of life?
That’s the promise of knee distraction, a new, innovative treatment that is being tested in a large-scale clinical trial in the Netherlands. In this post, we’ll explain what knee distraction is, how it works, and why it could be a game-changer for young patients with severe knee osteoarthritis.
What is Knee Distraction and How Does It Work?
Knee distraction is a procedure that involves inserting a device between the bones of the knee joint, creating a small gap of about 5 mm. This gap allows the joint to heal itself by stimulating the growth of new cartilage and bone tissue. The device is worn for about two months, during which the patient can walk with crutches and undergo physical therapy. After the device is removed, the patient continues with rehabilitation exercises to regain strength and mobility.
The idea behind knee distraction is to restore the natural cushioning and function of the knee joint, reducing pain and improving movement. Unlike a knee replacement, which involves removing and replacing the damaged parts of the joint with artificial components, knee distraction preserves the patient’s own knee and avoids the risks and complications of surgery.
Why is Knee Distraction a Promising Treatment for Young Patients?
Knee osteoarthritis is a degenerative condition that affects millions of people worldwide. It occurs when the cartilage that covers the ends of the bones in the knee joint wears away, causing pain, stiffness, and reduced range of motion. While there is no cure for knee osteoarthritis, there are treatments that can help manage the symptoms and slow down the progression of the disease.
However, not all treatments are suitable for everyone. For patients under the age of 65 with severe knee osteoarthritis, the options are limited. Conservative treatments, such as exercise therapy and painkillers, may not provide enough relief. A knee replacement, on the other hand, may not last long enough and may require revision surgery later in life. Revision surgeries are more complex, less effective, and more costly than primary surgeries.
Knee distraction offers a potential alternative for this group of patients. By delaying or avoiding a knee replacement, knee distraction could save them from undergoing multiple surgeries and improve their long-term outcomes. Moreover, knee distraction could reduce the burden of disease and the health care costs associated with knee osteoarthritis.
How is Knee Distraction Being Tested in the Netherlands?
Knee distraction is not a new concept. It has been developed and tested by researchers at UMC Utrecht, a university medical center in the Netherlands, for over a decade. With funding from ZonMw, ReumaNederland, and Friends of UMC Utrecht, they have conducted several small-scale clinical studies that have shown promising results.
However, before knee distraction can be widely adopted and reimbursed by the health care system, it needs to be proven in a larger and more rigorous trial. That’s why 14 orthopaedic departments of hospitals across the Netherlands are participating in a research project led by UMC Utrecht. The project has received a grant of € 6.7 million from the Promising Care subsidy scheme of the National Health Care Institute and ZonMw.
The project aims to enroll 120 patients under the age of 65 with severe knee osteoarthritis who do not respond to conservative treatments. They will be randomly assigned to either receive knee distraction or a knee replacement. They will be followed for two years and assessed on various measures, such as pain, function, quality of life, and cost-effectiveness. The project will also collect long-term data from previous patients who have undergone knee distraction or a knee replacement to evaluate the durability and safety of the treatments.
The project is expected to provide conclusive evidence on the (cost) effectiveness of knee distraction compared to knee replacement for young patients with severe knee osteoarthritis. If successful, the project could pave the way for knee distraction to become a standard and reimbursed treatment option in the Netherlands and beyond.
How Can You Learn More About Knee Distraction?
If you are interested in learning more about knee distraction, you can visit the official website of the project, where you can find more information, news, and updates. You can also watch a short video that explains how knee distraction works and hear from some of the patients who have tried it.
If you think you might be eligible for the trial, you can contact the research team to see if there are any spots available and if you meet the criteria. You can also talk to your doctor or orthopaedic surgeon to discuss your options and see if knee distraction is right for you.
Knee distraction is a new, promising treatment that could change the lives of many young patients with severe knee osteoarthritis. By stimulating the natural healing of the knee joint, it could offer them a chance to delay or avoid surgery and enjoy a better quality of life. We hope this blog post has given you some insight into what knee distraction is, how it works, and why it could be a game-changer for young patients with severe knee osteoarthritis.