Efficacy of intradiscal injection of platelet-rich plasma in the treatment of discogenic low back pain: A single-arm meta-analysis

Discogenic low back pain (DLBP) has been influencing people’s quality of life. Research on platelet-rich plasma (PRP) for DLBP has increased in recent years, but systematic summaries are lacking. This study analyzes all published studies related to the use of intradiscal injection of PRP for the treatment of DLBP and summarizes evidence-based medicine for the efficacy of this biologic treatment for DLBP. METHODS: Articles published from the inception of the database to April 2022 were retrieved from PubMed, the Cochrane Library, Embase, ClinicalTrial, the Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, Chongqing VIP Chinese Scientific Journals, and the Chinese Biomedicine databases. After the rigorous screening of all studies on PRP for DLBP, a meta-analysis was performed. RESULTS: Six studies, including 3 randomized controlled trials and 3 prospective single-arm trials, were included. According to this meta-analysis, pain scores decreased by >30% and >50% from baseline, with incidence rates of 57.3%, 50.7%, and 65.6%, and 51.0%, 53.1%, and 51.9%, respectively, after 1, 2, and 6 months of treatment. The Oswestry Disability Index scores decreased by >30% with an incidence rate of 40.2% and by >50% with an incidence rate of 53.9% from baseline after 2 and 6 months, respectively. Pain scores decreased significantly after 1, 2, and 6 months of treatment (standardized mean difference: 1 month, −1.04, P = .02; 2 months, −1.33, P = .003; and 6 months, −1.42, P = .0008). There was no significant change (P > .05) in the pain scores and the incidence rate when pain scores decreased by >30% and >50% from baseline between 1 and 2 months, 1 and 6 months, and 2 and 6 months after treatment. No significant adverse reactions occurred in any of the 6 included studies. CONCLUSION: Intradiscal injection of PRP is effective and safe in the treatment of DLBP, and there was no significant change in the patient’s pain 1, 2, and 6 months after PRP treatment. However, confirmation is required by additional high-quality studies due to the limitations of the quantity and quality of the included studies.