ab21303

Long-term efficacy and safety of intra-articular sodium hyaluronate (Hyalgan®) in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee

D.H. Neustadt

Department of Medicine, University of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky, USA

ABSTRACT
Objective
This prospective cohort study evaluated the long-term efficacy and safety of 5 weekly intra-articular (i.a.) injections of sodium hyaluronate (Hyalgan®) in 76 patients (92 knees) with moderate to severe osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee whose pain was not controlled by conventional measures.

Results
Thirteen patients had a repeat treatment course. A total of 72% of patients achieved >50% improvement (defined by physical examination and assessment of pain using a visual analog scale [VAS]) for 1 year or longer; 9% of patients failed to achieve >50% improvement for any period of time. The duration of response exceeded 2 years in some patients. Total knee replacement surgery was avoided or significantly delayed in 15 of 19 patients who were considering surgery prior to the injections. Ten of 15 (67%) knees improved after a repeat treatment course. Local adverse events were minor and infrequent.

Conclusion
Intra-articular sodium hyaluronate was an effective and safe treatment for pain in difficult-to-treat patients with moderate to severe OA of the knee.

Key words
Osteoarthritis of the knee, sodium hyaluronate, Hyalgan®.

This study was supported in part by an educational grant from Sanofi-Synthelabo Inc. The author has no financial interest in any company whose products are discussed in the article.
Please address correspondence and reprint requests to: David H. Neustadt, MD, FACP, MACR, Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of Louisville, 234 E. Gray Street, Suite 328, Medical Towers South, Louisville, Kentucky 40202, USA.