Clinical Safety and Effectiveness of Adipose-Derived Stromal Cell vs Stromal Vascular Fraction Injection for Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis: 2-Year Results of Parallel Single-Arm Trials

This represents the first head-to-head comparison of ASCs and SVF for the treatment of knee OA in humans. ASC and SVF injections both substantially improved knee pain and function at all follow-up time points, although ASC injections demonstrated significantly better improvements with regard to the MCID and PASS for the pain VAS and the MCID for the KOOS5 at 12 months. There appears to be no benefit to a booster ASC injection after initial treatment. Given less donor-site morbidity and equivalent superior outcomes at 2 years, the use of ASCs over SVF in the treatment of knee OA may be warranted.