Effect of denervation on knee joint function and pain in patients with knee osteoarthritis and cartilage injuries

Objective: To investigate the effect of denervation on knee joint function and pain in patients with knee osteoarthritis and cartilage injuries. Methods: In total, 93 patients with knee osteoarthritis and cartilage injuries hospitalized from January 2018 to January 2019 were involved in this study and divided randomly into a control group (n=46) and an observation group (n=47). The control group was treated with arthroscopic debridement while the observation group received denervation on top of arthroscopic debridement. The therapeutic effects before and after treatment were statistically evaluated between the two groups. Clinical manifestations including knee joint function, pain in knee joints, levels of IL-1 beta, TNF-alpha and FGF-21 in serum and synovial fluid, and complications were observed. Results: The observation group showed an overall response rate of 87.23%, significantly higher than 69.56% of the control group (P < 0.05). After operation, both groups had increased scores of knee joint function, and hip joint function was significantly higher in the observation group at 1, 3 and 6 months after operation (P < 0.05); the pain scores decreased in both groups and the observation group was significantly lower at 1, 3 and 6 months after operation (P < 0.05). Serum IL-1 beta and TNF-alpha as well as the levels of IL-1 beta, TNF-alpha and FGF-21 in the synovial fluid decreased in the two groups and were significantly lower in the observation group at 1 month after operation (P < 0.05); there was no significant difference in the incidence of complications between the two groups (P > 0.05). Conclusion: Denervation is of high application value in improving the knee joint function, alleviating postoperative pain, and reducing the levels of IL-1 beta, TNF-alpha, and FGF-21 in patients with knee osteoarthritis and cartilage injuries.