Surgery For Arthritis Of The Knee? Think Again

Surgery for knee pain, at least knee pain caused by degenerative conditions like osteoarthritis, has no lasting benefits, according to researchers at the University of Southern Denmark. Worse, the operation exposes patients to serious health risks like deep vein thrombosis, infection, and pulmonary embolism. The New York Times reports that the Danish researchers reviewed nine randomized trials that involved 1,270 patients ages 50 to 62, and compared the benefits of surgery (for pain caused by degenerative conditions like osteoarthritis, not for repair of traumatic injury to cartilage or ligaments) with control treatments like sham surgery, drug treatment and exercise programs. The envelope please….the researchers found that surgery provided slightly more pain relief than controls in the first six months — only 2.4 points lower on the 100-point scale. Wait, there’s more: there was no difference in pain scores between surgery and controls beyond that period, and there was no difference in physical function.