Freezing knee nerves: can minimally invasive procedures silence chronic pain?
NCT ID NCT07835672
First seen Sep 23, 2026 · Last updated Sep 23, 2026
Summary
Researchers reviewed medical records from 746 people aged 40 and older who had chronic knee pain from osteoarthritis for more than six months. The study examines whether ultrasound-guided treatments that target sensory nerves around the knee, including cryoneurolysis, radiofrequency ablation, and chemical neurolysis, reduced pain and improved function. The review looks at pain scores and WOMAC questionnaire results at 1, 6, and 12 months after treatment, along with any complications or repeat procedures. All treatments were part of routine care, not assigned for research.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- ultrasound-guided nerve treatments including cryoneurolysis, radiofrequency ablation, and chemical neurolysis
- What this could lead to
- If these nerve treatments work, they could offer people with chronic knee pain a minimally invasive option that avoids or delays knee replacement surgery.
- What could go wrong
- This is a retrospective review of existing records, not a controlled experiment, so it cannot prove the treatments caused any improvement. Results may not apply to other clinics, and nerve treatments carry risks of numbness, weakness, or pain returning.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Participants
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746 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Jun 2022
- Finished
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May 2026
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
Who is studied
Patients with chronic knee pain treated in routine outpatient care at Reh-Medica Rehabilitation Center in Warsaw, Poland, during June 1, 2022 through May 14, 2026, identified retrospectively from electronic and paper medical records. The population includes patients with symptomatic knee osteoarthritis and patients with persistent pain after total knee arthroplasty who underwent ultrasound-guided cryoneurolysis, radiofrequency ablation or chemical neurolysis. This closed retrospective analysis includes only treatment and follow-up observations from June 1, 2022 through May 14, 2026. Later clinical observations are excluded. No treatment is assigned for research purposes.
- Ages
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40 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Age 40 years or older at the time of the procedure. * Documented chronic knee pain lasting more than 6 months. * Baseline pain intensity of at least 4 points on the 0-10 NRS. * Failure of at least 6 months of conservative treatment, including medication, physiotherapy or previous intra-articular injections. * Positive response to a targeted diagnostic genicular nerve block, if performed according to routine center practice, defined as at least 50% pain reduction during the action of the local anesthetic. * Receipt of routine ultrasound-guided cryoneurolysis, radiofrequency ablation or chemical neurolysis of sensory nerves around the knee. * Advanced knee osteoarthritis, usually Kellgren-Lawrence grade III-IV, in a patient unsuitable for surgery because of comorbidities or declining arthroplasty; or persistent pain after total knee arthroplasty after exclusion of infection, implant loosening, mechanical failure and joint instability. * Index treatment between June 1, 2022 and May 14, 2026, with records documenting pretreatment baseline pain and at least one post-procedure follow-up pain assessment performed on or before May 14, 2026. Availability of WOMAC data determines inclusion in the functional-outcome analyses and is not required for the broader pain-outcome cohort. Exclusion Criteria: * Pregnancy. * Active infection at the procedure site or advanced skin ulceration around the knee. * Insufficient documentation to establish baseline pain or absence of any post-procedure follow-up assessment on or before May 14, 2026. * Confirmed mechanical implant complications, including loosening or structural failure, or acute joint infection in patients after total knee arthroplasty.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
-
Reh-Medica Centrum Rehabilitacji
Warsaw, Poland
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