Hip osteoarthritis: short-term efficacy and safety of viscosupplementation by hylan G-F 20. An open-label study in 22 patients

We studied the short-term safety and efficacy of intraarticular hylan G-F 20 (Synvisc®) in patients with symptomatic hip osteoarthritis. Methods. In this open-label prospective study, patients who had hip osteoarthritis with a visual analog pain scale score greater than 40/100 and a Lequesne index greater than 6 received one or two intra-articular injections of hylan G-F 20 under fluoroscopic guidance. The patients were evaluated once a month. A response was defined as a 50% decrease in the Lequesne score after 1 month as compared to baseline. Results. Thirty injections were performed in 22 patients with a mean age of 54 years. The response rate was 50% (11/22) after the first injection. Five of the 11 patients who failed to respond to the first injection received a second injection on day 30; two had a response, yielding a cumulative response rate of 13/22. In the six patients followed up for more than 6 months, the improvement was sustained. Short-term safety was satisfactory, with a self-limited exacerbation of pain during the first few days in three patients but no infections or other side effects.