Arthrosamid® is a new type of treatment that offers patients an effective alternative to current therapies. It is a non-biodegradable hydrogel (iPAAG) that is injected into the knee to cushion the joint and relieve pain.
To find out more about the injection please contact my team via the contact page here where you can email or call to book an appointment for a review of your knee.
The full patient information leaflet can be downloaded and printed here.
Understanding your Arthrosamid® treatment leaflet can be downloaded and printed here.
What is Arthrosamid®?
Arthrosamid® is a new type of treatment for knee osteoarthritis that offers you an effective alternative to the currently available therapies like steroid injections or knee replacement surgery. Based on an innovative non-biodegradable hydrogel technology, Arthrosamid® is 97.5% water with 2.5% being a cross linked polyacrylamide backbone. When injected into the knee Arthrosamid® cushions the joint and reduces pain, providing safe and sustained pain relief, all with one injection.
How does it work?
Arthrosamid® is an intra-articular polyacrylamide hydrogel injection (iPAAG) for the symptomatic treatment of knee osteoarthritis. Once injected into your knee joint cavity, it restores the consistency of your synovial fluid, the lubricating fluid in your knee, improving lubrication and cushioning of the joint. Arthrosamid® also integrates into the synovium or lining of your inner joint capsule creating a cushion-like effect and blocks the inflammation pathways that can cause knee pain.
- Over 20 years of research and development
- Arthrosamid is safe for intended use
- Over 1,000,000 hydrogel injections have been given worldwide
Arthrosamid® treatment for knee osteoarthritis that is a minimally invasive out-patient procedure.
It is performed under local anaesthesia, with ultrasound guidance. Arthrosamid is injected into your joint. You do not need to stay in hospital for treatment.
What are the benefits of Arthrosamid treatment?
Simple – It is a simple out-patient procedure that means you can go home the same day.
Safe – Arthrosamid® is safe for intended use and is biocompatible which allows it to integrate with the tissues in your knee. The overall safety profile of the hydrogel has undergone two decades over of research and development with approximately 1,000,000 hydrogel units used for various indications in the body.
Sustained – In clinical trials, patients reported a reduction in their pain levels by Week 4 after their injection. The reduction in pain was sustained change over 156 weeks. Arthrosamid® trials continue to follow patients for 5 years.
What are the side effects of Arthrosamid?
Before you are given an Arthrosamid® injection, you will also have a local anaesthetic, which may sting a little, to numb the area around your knee. No serious adverse events linked to Arthrosamid® have been reported in studies. The most commonly reported side effects were injection related mild to moderate pain and or joint swelling, which were generally transient in nature.
What should I expect during the procedure?
Arthrosamid® is given as a single injection into the knee’s intra- articular cavity by Mr Guy under ultra-sound guidance. The injection therefore is a minimally invasive procedure that you can receive as an outpatient.
Before you are given an Arthrosamid® injection, you will have some local anaesthetic instilled in and around the knee to reduce any discomfort you may feel. As this is classed as an implant, you will be given antibiotics to reduce the potential risk of infection.
What should I expect immediately after the procedure?
- Following the procedure, you may be allowed to leave as soon as you feel able.
- Your knee may start to feel uncomfortable as the anaesthetic wears off, but many patients do not report any discomfort. The most common feeling is of distension of the knee joint in about a quarter of the people injected and some pain in and around the knee / injection site.
- You should ‘rest’ your knee for 3 days after the injection and resume light rehabilitation from 7 days building up from day 14 to higher levels of activity. Every knee is different and you should wait until the knee is improving before you try and increase levels of activity rather than rely on the 14 day mark!
- You should continue your regular medication and pain killers as normal.
- Arthrosamid® may feel like a different sensation to other injections that you have previously experienced as it is more viscous than other injectable treatments.
When will I begin to feel less pain?
You are likely to feel some pain relief within 24 hours; however, it can take 4 to 12 weeks to feel the maximum benefit. Clinical data shows that most patients start to feel an effect within a few weeks. Data would suggest that pain relief will continue to improve over the first 6 months or so with a sustained response for several years.
Please take time to read the patient information brochure and the patient information leaflet if you have not already done so. This contains many of your FAQ’s. Please contact us here if you wish to call or email book an appointment to discuss your knee problem further.