Millions of people around the world suffer from some type of arthritis. Among the most common forms of the disease are rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, or OA. OA is characterized by the degeneration of the cartilage that cushions specific joints, often due to aging or injury. People with OA may also suffer from inflammation of the synovial membrane, called synovitis, caused by abrasion particles of the articular cartilage and bone. While the symptoms can only be treated with analgetic or antiphlogistic drugs, for the 10 percent of patients who do not respond to drug therapy removal of the inflamed tissue through surgery or radiation is necessary.
Many clinical studies have demonstrated the safety and effectiveness of radiosynoviorthesis – the application of beta-emitting radionuclides to remove the inflamed membrane – in treating rheumatoid arthritis, but there is a lack of data documenting the efficacy of radiosynoviorthesis for OA patients.
Kampen and his colleagues conducted their study to fill the knowledge gap. Radiosynoviorthesis was performed on 53 finger joints of 29 OA patients (who had proven synovitis) using colloidal Erbium-169-Citrate. Patients reported significant pain relief in 2/3 of the treated joints up to a mean follow-up of 3.5 years. These results demonstrate that radiosynoviorthesis is only slightly less effective in treating OA of the finger joints than it is in treating rheumatoid arthritis, and suggest that the procedure should be considered as a treatment option.