The Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR) has published a position statement supporting the use of genicular artery embolization (GAE) as a minimally-invasive treatment for patients with symptomatic knee osteoarthritis who have failed conservative therapy and are not candidates for, or wish to delay, total knee arthroplasty.
Published May 11 in the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology, the statement cites clinical data supporting GAE as a safe, durable, joint-preserving intervention that targets the inflammatory and neurovascular drivers of osteoarthritis-related pain, according to SIR.
The statement also calls for larger, randomized controlled trials to confirm early clinical data and inform patient care guidelines for knee osteoarthritis (KOA).
KOA results from enzymes released as cartilage breaks down, causing inflammation and pain -- not simply from wear and tear, as previously thought, SIR explained. GAE reduces abnormal blood flow in the affected knee, which the society said effectively reduces painful inflammation, according to SIR.
The document was developed by interventional radiologists with published expertise in musculoskeletal embolization, informed by multidisciplinary consensus among experts in the management of KOA.
Find the full statement here.
