What is Genicular Radiofrequency?
Genicular radiofrequency is an innovative treatment option used to relieve knee pain. This highly advanced and effective procedure is on the cutting edge of medicine. By selectively applying radio wave energy to the nerves surrounding the knee (genicular nerves), we can effectively relieve knee pain from a variety of underlying causes.
Indications
One of the greatest advantages of genicular ablation is the fact that it is performed outside of the knee capsule. This is what makes it successful when other procedures, like cortisone injections and hyaluronic acid injections, fail. This procedure can be done up to three weeks before knee surgery and even after surgery.
Genicular neurotomy is indicated for a variety of conditions:
- Osteoarthritis (OA)
- Chronic Knee Pain
- Degenerative Joint Disease
- Total Knee Replacement (before or after)
- Partial Knee Replacement (before or after)
- Patients unfit for knee replacement
- Patients who want to avoid a knee replacement
While surgery is a widely-accepted treatment option for patients with advanced joint disease, many individuals have comorbidities preventing them from being a candidate. Other patients may simply want to avoid surgery. In either case, radiofrequency ablation of the genicular nerves is a potential alternative to joint replacement for pain.
Genicular ablation is a safe and effective way of controlling post-operative knee pain after knee replacements, as well. Some orthopedic surgeons suggest patients have the procedure done three weeks or more before a knee replacement to decrease the pain experienced after the surgery.
Despite the general efficacy of knee replacements, many patients complain that pain persists after surgery. In the past, patients traditionally had few options, if any, that did not involve additional surgery. With genicular nerve radiofrequency, patients can look forward to pain relief without surgical intervention.