Diagnostic Knee Needle Arthroscopy in Predicting Unicompartmental Knee Osteoarthritis

Study Purpose

Plain radiographs and MRI play an important role in the diagnosis of intra-articular knee pathology and can be used to guide treatment decisions. These imaging modalities however have several limitations which can lead to misdiagnosis, incorrect treatment decisions, and suboptimal patient care. The gold standard for confirmation of intra-articular knee pathology is formal diagnostic knee arthroscopy. Diagnostic knee arthroscopy must be performed in the operating room under general anesthesia, which adds both risk and cost to the patient. In contrast to formal diagnostic arthroscopy which uses a 4.8mm arthroscope, needle arthroscopy (NA) uses a 1.9mm nano-arthroscope. NA with a nano-arthroscope is a technique which allows direct high quality intra-articular visualization to be obtained without general anesthesia, and can be performed either in the office or the operating room (OR). One specific application for this technology is in the evaluation of patients who are being considered for either a total knee arthroplasty (TKA) or a unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (UKA). An essential component of the pre-operative work-up is determining if the patient has isolated unicompartmental knee osteoarthritis (OA) or more widespread tricompartmental knee OA. This distinction is essential as each condition is treated differently; isolated unicompartmental knee OA is treated with a UKA while tricompartmental OA is treated with TKA. Our primary objective is to determine if NA is an effective, safe, and cost effective tool to confirm the presence of unicompartmental OA and thus guide patient management in the decision to perform UKA or TKA. Disclosure: This study is sponsored by Arthrex Inc, the manufacturer of the NanoScope™ operative arthroscopy imaging system which will be used in the study. Arthrex will provide NanoScope™ supplies only; no direct monetary funding will be provided.

Recruitment Criteria

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Healthy volunteers are participants who do not have a disease or condition, or related conditions or symptoms

No
Study Type

An interventional clinical study is where participants are assigned to receive one or more interventions (or no intervention) so that researchers can evaluate the effects of the interventions on biomedical or health-related outcomes.


An observational clinical study is where participants identified as belonging to study groups are assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.


Searching Both is inclusive of interventional and observational studies.

Interventional
Eligible Ages 18 Years - 89 Years
Gender All
More Inclusion & Exclusion Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

  • - English fluency and literacy.
  • - Able to provide informed consent.
  • - Males or females, > 18 years of age and < 89.
  • - Indicated for unicompartmental knee arthroplasty based on a series of existing weight bearing knee plain radiographs.
  • - Have equivocal weight bearing knee radiographs, in which the indication for UKA vs. TKA is not clear.
  • - Meet the following criteria: no inflammatory arthritis, intact Anterior cruciate ligament, no fixed varus deformity > 10 degrees, no fixed valgus deformity > 5 degrees, knee range of motion > 90 degrees, no patellofemoral arthritis.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • - Males or females < 18 years of age and >89.
  • - Prisoners.
  • - Patient who have existing radiographic evidence of tricompartmental OA.
- Patients with inflammatory arthritis, anterior cruciate ligament deficiency, fixed varus deformity > 10 degrees, fixed valgus deformity > 5 degrees, knee range of motion < 90 degrees, patellofemoral arthritis

Trial Details

Trial ID:

This trial id was obtained from ClinicalTrials.gov, a service of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, providing information on publicly and privately supported clinical studies of human participants with locations in all 50 States and in 196 countries.

NCT05002387
Phase

Phase 1: Studies that emphasize safety and how the drug is metabolized and excreted in humans.

Phase 2: Studies that gather preliminary data on effectiveness (whether the drug works in people who have a certain disease or condition) and additional safety data.

Phase 3: Studies that gather more information about safety and effectiveness by studying different populations and different dosages and by using the drug in combination with other drugs.

Phase 4: Studies occurring after FDA has approved a drug for marketing, efficacy, or optimal use.

N/A
Lead Sponsor

The sponsor is the organization or person who oversees the clinical study and is responsible for analyzing the study data.

Albany Medical College
Principal Investigator

The person who is responsible for the scientific and technical direction of the entire clinical study.

Joseph P Zimmerman, MDAndrew D Posner, MD
Principal Investigator Affiliation Albany Medical CollegeAlbany Medical College
Agency Class

Category of organization(s) involved as sponsor (and collaborator) supporting the trial.

Other, Industry
Overall Status Recruiting
Countries United States
Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied.

Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee
Additional Details

A prospective study of patients being evaluated for UKA/TKA will be performed. The study will include two groups: 1) patients who are diagnosed with isolated unicompartmental knee OA by standard weight bearing radiographs and are likely indicated for UKA and 2) patients for whom the standard weight bearing radiographs are equivocal for the diagnosis of unicompartmental OA vs.#46; tricompartmental OA. The preoperative radiographic evaluation prior to UKA or TKA includes a series of standard weight bearing knee radiographs which historically have been used to differentiate between unicompartmental OA and tricompartmental OA. This series of radiographs includes weight bearing AP, lateral, skyline, Rosenberg, and valgus stress views. Subsequently, after obtaining informed consent, both groups of patients will undergo NA, performing in the operating room on the day of arthroplasty, prior to surgery beginning. NA will be performed with a 1.9mm nano arthroscope, as part of their diagnostic pre-arthroplasty evaluation, in lieu of standard arthroscopy, which utilizes a 4.8mm arthroscope. NA will directly visualize the articular cartilage in the medial, lateral, and patellofemoral compartments of the knee. Cartilage will be arthroscopically graded according to the Outerbridge Classification of chondral lesions. Patients with visualized Grade IV full-thickness cartilage loss with exposed subchondral bone isolated to either the medial or lateral compartment, with Grade 0-II lesions in the contralateral and / or patellofemoral compartments, will undergo a medial or lateral UKA, respectively. Patients with a Grade IV lesion in the medial or lateral compartment, with asymptomatic Grade III lesions in the contralateral and / or patellofemoral compartments will undergo a medial or lateral UKA, respectively. Patients with a Grade IV lesion in the medial or lateral compartment, with symptomatic Grade III lesions in the contralateral and / or patellofemoral compartments will undergo TKA. Patients with a Grade IV lesion in the medial or lateral compartment, with Grade IV lesions in the contralateral and / or patellofemoral compartments will undergo TKA. Intraoperative findings at the time of arthroplasty will serve at the gold standard to which the NA findings will be compared. Furthermore, the diagnosis obtained from NA will be compared to the diagnosis obtained from preoperative weight bearing radiographs.

Arms & Interventions

Arms

Experimental: Unicompartmental OA or equivocal findings in XR

After obtaining informed consent, patients will undergo needle arthroscopy, performed in the operating room prior to undergoing arthroplasty

Interventions

Device: - NanoScope™ Operative Arthroscopy (Arthrex, Inc)

Needle arthroscopy will be performed in the operating room to visual the medial, lateral, and patellofemoral compartments prior to undergoing either unicompartmental or total knee arthroplasty

Contact a Trial Team

If you are interested in learning more about this trial, find the trial site nearest to your location and contact the site coordinator via email or phone. We also strongly recommend that you consult with your healthcare provider about the trials that may interest you and refer to our terms of service below.

Albany Medical Center, Albany, New York

Status

Recruiting

Address

Albany Medical Center

Albany, New York, 12208

Site Contact

Andrew D Posner, MD

[email protected]

518-453-3079