Salt Lake City-based University of Utah Health is studying genicular artery embolization, a minimally invasive procedure, as a potential treatment for people with knee osteoarthritis.
U of U Health recently began treating patients with GAE and is enrolling participants in the SHAM-PAIN Trial: Knee Artery Embolization to Reduce Pain in Those Who Have Osteoarthritis. Osman Ahmed, MD, an interventional radiologist at U of U Health, is principal investigator of the study, according to a Sept. 8 news release.
The trial compares GAE with a sham procedure to determine the procedure’s benefit beyond the placebo effect. Researchers assess participants’ knee pain every three months for up to one year. Participants who initially receive the sham procedure can receive GAE after three months.
GAE targets abnormal blood vessels associated with inflammation in knee osteoarthritis. During the procedure, tiny particles are delivered through a catheter to reduce or stop blood flow to targeted abnormal vessels while keeping blood flow to normal arteries intact.
An estimated 5 million U.S. adults have symptomatic knee osteoarthritis that does not respond to nonsurgical therapies, according to the release.
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