title: Consensus statement on viscosupplementation with hyaluronic acid for the management of osteoarthritis.
abstract: Viscosupplementation (VS) with hyaluronic acid is currently used by physicians to treat osteoarthritis. However, many aspects of this treatment remain questionable and subject of controversy. A group of 8 experts in this field, from European countries, met to debate on 24 statements previously listed by the group members. Based on an extensive research of the literature and expert opinion, a consensus position has been proposed for each statement. Agreement was achieved on some recommendations. In particular, the expert achieved unanimous agreement in favor of the following statements: VS is an effective treatment for mild to moderate knee OA; VS is not an alternative to surgery in advanced hip OA; VS is a well-tolerated treatment of knee and other joints OA; VS should not be used only in patients who have failed to respond adequately to analgesics and NSAIDs; VS is a "positive" indication but not a "lack of anything better" indication; the dosing regimen must be supported by evidence-based medicine; cross-linking is a proven means for prolonging IA residence time of HA; the best approach to inject accurately knee joint is the lateral mid-patellar one; when VS is performed under fluoroscopy, the amount of radiopaque contrast agent must be as low as possible to avoid viscosupplement dilution. These clear recommendations have been established to help practitioners in the use of viscosupplementation.
authors.affiliation: Bone and Cartilageesearch Unit, Université de Liège, CHU Sart-Tilman, Liège, Belgium; Princess Paola Hospital, Marche-en-Famenne, Belgium.
authors.forename: Yves
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Henrotin
authors.affiliation: Academic Department of Orthopaedics, Hull and East Yorkshire NHS Trust Castle Hill Hospital, Cottingham, UK.
authors.forename: Raghu
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Raman
authors.affiliation: UFR médicale, Université Paris Diderot, Paris, France; Hôpital Lariboisière, Fédération de Rhumatologie, Inserm 1132, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Pascal
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Richette
authors.affiliation: Hôpital Européen Georges-Pompidou, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Hervé
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bard
authors.affiliation: Orthopedic Department, Johanna-Etienne-Hospital, Neuss, Germany.
authors.forename: Jörg
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jerosch
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, Hôpital Nord Franche-Comté, 14 rue de mulhouse, 90000 Belfort, France. Electronic address: tconrozier@chbm.fr.
authors.forename: Thierry
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Conrozier
authors.affiliation: Paris XII University, UPEC, Department of Rheumatology, Henri Mondor Hospital, Creteil, France.
authors.forename: Xavier
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Chevalier
authors.affiliation: U.O.S. of Rheumatology, Ospedale San Pietro Fatebenefratelli, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Migliore
mesh_terms: D032921:Consensus; D019468:Disease Management; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006801:Humans; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010003:Osteoarthritis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055676:Viscosupplementation / Q000379:methods*; D055675:Viscosupplements / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D055675:Viscosupplements; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid
keywords: Ankle; Consensus; Experts opinion; Hip; Hyaluronan; Hyaluronic acid; Intra-articular injection; Knee; Osteoarthritis; Recommendations; Shoulder; Thumb; Trapezio-metacarpal joint; Treatment; Viscosupplementation