Effects of the umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (UC-MSCs) in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis. Methods: PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Embase, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure and Wanfang databases were searched from inception to March 31, 2024. RevMan 5.3 was used to conduct meta-analyses of the final included studies. Results: Three randomized controlled studies were conducted. Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index was reduced in the UC-MSCs group compared that in to the control group (mean difference: -25.85; 95% confidence interval: -41.50, -10.20; P = .001). Knee Lysholm Score was improved in the UC-MSCs group compared with the control group (mean difference: 18.33; 95% confidence interval: 12.89, 23.77; P < .00001). Egger test showed P = .583, indicating no publication bias. Sensitivity analysis indicated that the results were stable. Conclusion: Intra-articular injection of UC-MSCs improved function and reduced pain in patients with knee osteoarthritis. However, the number of included studies was small and more studies are needed to confirm this.