HYAJOINT Plus Trumps Synvisc-One on Pain, Stiffness

When it comes to knee osteoarthritis (OA), says new research from Taiwan, HYAJOINT Plus topped Synvisc-One in pain reduction and stiffness scores at six months. The study, entitled, “Comparison of Single Intra-Articular Injection of Novel Hyaluronan (HYA-JOINT Plus) with Synvisc-One for Knee Osteoarthritis: A Randomized, Controlled, Double-Blind Trial of Efficacy and Safety,” was published in the March 15, 2017 edition of The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery.

Shu-Fen Sun, M.D. is with the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital in Taiwan. A co-author on the study, Dr. Sun commented to OTW, “To date, there is no well-controlled trial comparing a single injection of hyaluronan (HA) for knee OA. This study compared the efficacy and safety of a single intra-articular injection of a novel crosslinked HA (HYAJOINT Plus) with a single injection of Synvisc-One in patients with knee OA.”

The authors wrote, “In a prospective, randomized, controlled, double-blind trial with a 6-month follow-up, 132 patients with knee osteoarthritis (Kellgren-Lawrence grade 2 or 3) were randomized to receive 1 intra-articular injection of 3 mL of HYA-JOINT Plus (20 mg/mL) (n = 66) or 6 mL of Synvisc-One (8 mg/mL) (n = 66). The primary outcome was the change from baseline in the visual analog scale (VAS) (0 to 100 mm) pain score at 6 months. Secondary outcome measures included the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC, Likert scale), Lequesne index, timed ‘Up & Go’ (TUG) test, single-limb stance (SLS) test, use of rescue analgesics, and patient satisfaction.”

Dr. Sun told OTW, “Both a single injection of HYAJOINT Plus and Synvisc-One are safe and effective for 6 months in patients with knee OA. HYAJOINT Plus is superior to Synvisc-One in VAS pain reduction at 1, 3 and 6 months, with similar safety.”