Comparison of the Efficacy of Chemical Genicular Nerve Neurolysis Using Alcohol or Phenol Versus Radiofrequency Ablation Under Ultrasound Guidance for Pain Management in Patients With Knee Osteoarthritis

Overview

Chronic knee pain is a common condition that affects many people, particularly those with knee osteoarthritis. It can limit mobility, reduce the quality of life, and increase the risk of falling . There are various treatment options for chronic knee osteoarthritis pain, including medications, physical therapy and surgery. Topical and oral analgesic medications and physical therapy, are often used in this population but with variable success and often wanting pain relief over time as the condition progresses. Patients who fail medical treatment often undergo total knee arthroplasty (TKA) However, there are significant comorbidities associated with TKA, and most of patients suffer with chronic knee pain after this surgery Furthermore, a subset of patients are unable to undergo TKA because of medical comorbidities. One alternative treatment option is genicular nerve ablation, which involves destroying nerves that carry pain signals from the knee joint to the brain. Genicular nerve ablation can be performed using radiofrequency ablation (RFA) or chemical agents such as phenol. Both methods aim to provide long-term pain relief and functional improvement in patients with chronic knee pain(4). Chemical neurolytics, such as alcohol or phenol, have come to the fore because of their low cost and ease of application compared to radiofrequency ablation.These methods can be easily applied with ultrasound (US) guidance, which allows precise targeting of the relevant nerves. However, there is a lack of literature on appropriate agents and dose selection issues . Radiofrequency neurolysis (RFN) of the genicular nerves, which provides innervation to the capsule of the knee joint, as well as to the intra-articular and extra-articular ligaments, have been of considerable interest as an effective technique to alleviated knee osteoarthritis pain .However, it requires expensive specialized equipment and trained personnel, which may not be available or affordable in some settings.