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ACU_Knee: Role of Acupuncture in Knee Prosthetic Surgery
Sponsor: Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo di Pavia
Summary
Post-operative analgesia after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) has always been a challenge in the anesthesiological setting, having to combine good pain control and the need for early mobilization, both factors that can affect the quality of rehabilitation treatment, prosthetic functional outcome, the onset of chronic pain, joint stiffness and the consequent quality of life of the patient. Recent loco-regional anesthesia (LRA) techniques have made an essential contribution to peri-operative management in the fast-track perspective of surgery, in terms of optimization of analgesia and rapid functional recovery. Inadequate post-operative analgesia, by affecting the normal rehabilitation pathway, is associated with medium-long term complications, such as chronic pain, joint stiffness and patient dissatisfaction, which often compromise functional autonomy and quality of life of the patient and may require invasive treatments (surgical revision, unlocking under general anesthesia). The local and systemic inflammatory state, evidenced by peri-operative dosage of specific biomarkers, appears to be related to prosthetic outcome.
Official title: ACU_Knee - Role of Acupuncture in Knee Prosthetic Surgery: Analgesia, Functional Outcome and Inflammatory Markers
Key Details
Gender
All
Age Range
18 Years - Any
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Enrollment
80
Start Date
2024-04-10
Completion Date
2026-12-31
Last Updated
2025-08-14
Healthy Volunteers
No
Conditions
Interventions
Acupuncture group
In the Acu group, acupuncture and auriculotherapy will be added to the standard treatment: patients will undergo three/four sessions of manual acupuncture lasting 20 minutes, the first in the immediate pre-operative period and the subsequent ones at a distance of 24, 48, 72 hours from surgery. The treatment includes manual acupuncture applied to specific points: LI4, LV3 and ST36 bilaterally and monolaterally SP6 and GB34, ipsilateral to the knee to be prostheticized. Furthermore, auricolar needles will be positioned, before surgery, for self-stimulation of the auriculotherapy points corresponding to Shen Men bilaterally and the knee point ipsilateral to the surgical side.
Locations (1)
Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo - SC AR3 - Anestesia e Terapia Intensiva Postchirurgica
Pavia, Pavia, Italy