Arthroscopic synovectomy and postoperative assisted radiotherapy for treating diffuse pigmented villonodular synovitis of the knee: An observational retrospective study

Objective: this retrospective observational study aims to explore the treatment procedure and outcomes of arthroscopically assisted radiotherapy for diffuse pigmented villonodular synovitis (pvns) of the knee joint. methods: from september 2006 to august 2011, 28 diffuse pvns patients were diagnosed and treated under arthroscopy. twenty six underwent post-operative radiotherapy. all patients were followed up, and the average follow-up period was 54 months (range: 24 to 72 months). results: all 26 patients who received external radiotherapy showed no recurrence at post-operative follow-up; the lysholm knee joint function score increased from 54.3±9.0 at pre-operation to 71.2±6.7 at post-operation (paired t-test, t = −13.35, p<0.01). conclusions: arthroscopic synovectomy is an ideal treatment for pvns of the knee. adjuvant post-operative external radiotherapy prevents the recurrence of diffuse pvns.