Platelet-Rich Plasma Injections Are Inferior to Corticosteroid Injections for Short-Term Pain Relief: A Prospective, Double-Blinded, Randomized Controlled Trial.
OrthoEvidence Journal (OE Journal) - ACE Report
OE Journal. 2025;13(19):22 J Arthroplasty . 2025 Jul;40(7S1):S59-S64.What this means for my practice?
For symptomatic KL II–III knee OA, a single CS injection yields clinically meaningful pain relief at 6 weeks compared with PRP, but by 3 months pain and function are similar between treatments. Clinically, CS may be preferred when near-term analgesia is the priority, acknowledging PRP offers no short-term functional advantage in this study. Limitations include modest sample size, KL II–III only, patient-reported outcomes, and follow-up limited to 3 months.
Study Summary
Fifty-two patients with symptomatic KL II–III knee osteoarthritis (OA) were randomized to receive platelet-rich plasma (PRP) (n=26) or corticosteroid (CS) (n=26). The primary outcome was change in VAS pain. Secondary outcomes were NPRS pain, KOOS JR, and WOMAC. Outcomes were assessed at baseline, 6 weeks, and 3 months. Overall, the results of the study revealed that CS produced significantly larger pain reductions than PRP at 6 weeks and met MCIDs for both VAS and NPRS, whereas groups were similar by 3 months and showed comparable functional gains at both time points. These findings suggest CS offers superior short-term analgesia without functional advantage over PRP through 3 months.
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