Leeches for the Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis

RWTH Aachen University118 enrolled

Overview

Previous studies have not addressed the question, whether or not a repeated leeching can supply symptomatic relief of osteoarthritic pain for extended periods of time. We present a randomized study to the effectiveness of single and repeated leech therapy in cases with advanced osteoarthritis of the knee using a large patient group compared to a control group, who were both blinded to the actual treatment modality.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Enrollment

118

Conditions

Osteoarthritis Arthralgia

Interventions

Single LeechingPROCEDURE

Repeated Leeching after 4 weeksPROCEDURE

Placebo LeechingPROCEDURE

Eligibility

Sex: ALL

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * Osteoarthritis of the knee * Persistent osteoarthritic symptoms for at least 6 months * Radiographic evidence of late stage osteoarthritis of the knee (stage III-IV) * History of conservative management including pain medication and physical therapy Exclusion Criteria: * Anticoagulant treatment or history of hemophilia * History or presence of rheumatic diseases leading to secondary osteoarthritis * Presence of hematological, hepatic, renal or immunological disease * Insulin-dependant diabetes mellitus * Intraarticular injections or systemic application of corticosteroids during the 3 preceding months * History of surgery of the affected knee during the last 3 months or joint replacement * History of previous leech therapy * Lack of informed consent

Locations (1)

Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University Hospital of the RWTH Aachen, Germany

Aachen, Germany

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

KOOS Score overall (Clinical score)before intervention, after 1,4 and 6 weeks, 3 and 6 months

WOMAC Score overall (Clinical score)before intervention, after 1,4 and 6 weeks, 3 and 6 months

VAS (Visual analog scale, pain score)before intervention, after 1,4 and 6 weeks, 3 and 6 months

Secondary Outcomes

KOOS subscores before intervention, after 1,4 and 6 weeks, 3 and 6 months

WOMAC subscores before intervention, after 1,4 and 6 weeks, 3 and 6 months

Requirement of pain medication before intervention, after 1,4 and 6 weeks, 3 and 6 months

Adverse events

Data from ClinicalTrials.gov

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