Effect of Patellar Denervation on Post-operative Knee Pain and Knee Function in Total Knee Arthroplasty

Effect of Patellar Denervation on Post-operative Knee Pain and Knee Function in Total Knee Arthroplasty: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Status

Completed

Phases

Study type

Interventional

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT07342166

Acronym

Enrollment

Registered

2026-01-15

Start date

2023-08-08

Completion date

2025-06-21

Last updated

2026-01-15

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Osteoarthritis, Knee

Keywords

Patellar denervation, Total knee arthroplasty, Total knee replacement

Brief summary

This study is a double-blind randomized controlled trial aiming to investigate the effects of patellar denervation using electrocautery on postoperative knee pain and knee function in patients undergoing primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA) without patellar resurfacing.

Detailed description

This study is a prospective, double-blind randomized controlled trial conducted at Queen Savang Vadhana Memorial Hospital between 2023 and 2025. The aim of the study is to assess the effect of patellar denervation using electrocautery on postoperative knee pain and knee function in patients undergoing primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA) without patellar resurfacing. Sixty-four patients were enrolled and randomly assigned to either the patellar denervation group (PD) or the non-denervation group (NPD), with 32 participants in each group.

Interventions

PROCEDUREPatellar Denervation

Electrocautery patella circumferentially during total knee arthroplasty

Study design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

PARALLEL

Primary purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

TRIPLE (Subject, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

ALL

Age

55 Years to 85 Years

Healthy volunteers

Inclusion criteria

* Age 55-85 years old * Knee osteoarthritis * Plan for total knee arthroplasty after failed conservative treatment for at least 3 months

Exclusion criteria

* Previous history of trauma, fracture or open surgery on the same knee * Inflammatory arthritis or Crystal-induced arthritis * Patellar instability or isolated patellofemoral osteoarthritis * Unable to answer questionnaire * Cannot tolerate surgery due to medical comorbidities

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame
Visual analog scale score for knee pain	2 weeks, 6 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months

Secondary

Measure	Time frame
Kujala score	3 months, 1 year
Knee Society score	3 months, 1 year
Timed up and go test	3 months, 1 year

Countries

Thailand

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026