Radiofrequency Ablation for the Treatment of Chronic Hip Pain: Does It Work?
6 affiliations
- 1Orthopaedic Surgery and Traumatology, Univeristy Hospital of Ioannina, Ioannina, GRC.
- 2Orthopaedics and Traumatology, KAT General Hospital of Attica, Athens, GRC.
- 3Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Medicine, European University Cyprus, Frankfurt, DEU.
- 4Orthopaedics and Traumatology, School of Medicine, European University Cyprus, Frankfurt, DEU.
- 5Orthopaedics and Traumatology, University Hospital of Ioannina, Ioannina, GRC.
- 6Orthopaedics and Traumatology, University General Hospital of Larissa, Larissa, GRC.
Abstract
Chronic hip pain is a common condition that can affect a person's overall quality of life. Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) has gained attention as a minimally invasive technique that can reduce pain by targeting the small sensory nerves around the hip joint. While early reports are encouraging, clinical studies have shown mixed results. This meta-analysis aimed to clarify the efficacy of RFA in the management of chronic hip pain. A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted using PubMed/Medline, Scopus, and Cochrane databases from January 2007 to June 2025 to identify studies reporting clinical outcomes of hip RFA. Standardized mean differences (Hedges' g) and pooled percentage changes in pain were calculated using a random-effects model. Sensitivity, subgroup, and interaction analyses assessed the influence of RFA type, imaging guidance, and study design. Across 449 patients, RFA produced significant pain reduction at all time points: 61% at early-term (one month) (39.09%, 83.06%), 58% at short-term (three months) (34.85, 81.12), 45% at mid-term (six months) (30.24%, 59.56%), and 35% at long-term (nine months) (19.29%, 50.79%). Effect sizes were largest within the first three months (g=5.9443 (3.2384, 8.6501)). Subgroup analyses revealed no significant differences among RFA types, whereas combined ultrasound-fluoroscopy guidance tended to yield better outcomes than either guidance modality alone. This review demonstrates that RFA is an effective and safe minimally invasive therapy for management of chronic hip pain, offering substantial pain reduction in the early- and short-term periods.
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BibTeX
@article{gelalis2026radiofrequency,
title = {{Radiofrequency Ablation for the Treatment of Chronic Hip Pain: Does It Work?}},
author = {Dimitrios I Gelalis and Dimitrios P Christakos and Ioannis Alatsathianos and Benav Bnavi and Hannah Katarina Rance and Ioannis Gkiatas and Vasilios Raoulis and Michael-Alexander Malahias},
journal = {Cureus},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.7759/cureus.117764},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/43011823},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Radiofrequency Ablation for the Treatment of Chronic Hip Pain: Does It Work?
AU - Dimitrios I Gelalis
AU - Dimitrios P Christakos
AU - Ioannis Alatsathianos
AU - Benav Bnavi
AU - Hannah Katarina Rance
AU - Ioannis Gkiatas
AU - Vasilios Raoulis
AU - Michael-Alexander Malahias
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/11
JO - Cureus
DO - 10.7759/cureus.117764
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/43011823
AB - Chronic hip pain is a common condition that can affect a person's overall quality of life. Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) has gained attention as a minimally invasive technique that can reduce pain by targeting the small sensory nerves around the hip joint. While early reports are encouraging, clinical studies have shown mixed results. This meta-analysis aimed to clarify the efficacy of RFA in the management of chronic hip pain. A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted using PubMed/Medline, Scopus, and Cochrane databases from January 2007 to June 2025 to identify studies reporting clinical outcomes of hip RFA. Standardized mean differences (Hedges' g) and pooled percentage changes in pain were calculated using a random-effects model. Sensitivity, subgroup, and interaction analyses assessed the influence of RFA type, imaging guidance, and study design. Across 449 patients, RFA produced significant pain reduction at all time points: 61% at early-term (one month) (39.09%, 83.06%), 58% at short-term (three months) (34.85, 81.12), 45% at mid-term (six months) (30.24%, 59.56%), and 35% at long-term (nine months) (19.29%, 50.79%). Effect sizes were largest within the first three months (g=5.9443 (3.2384, 8.6501)). Subgroup analyses revealed no significant differences among RFA types, whereas combined ultrasound-fluoroscopy guidance tended to yield better outcomes than either guidance modality alone. This review demonstrates that RFA is an effective and safe minimally invasive therapy for management of chronic hip pain, offering substantial pain reduction in the early- and short-term periods.
SN - 2168-8184
ER -